Two Strings- A MHA OC Fic
by Spiek
Summary: Ghosts aren't real... Well that's what most people like to believe. Aiko Hikari believes in them because her parents are ghosts- ghosts of her past that she wanted to leave behind. But when a certain ghostly friend is in need of help, Aiko finds herself obligated to help her, and by doing so, must confront her past... and her parents.
1. Chapter 1: Song of the Siren

**Chapter 1: Song of the Siren**

 **WARNING: Noir, here! Gonna get into OC heavy territory- but this story is sort of in the background taking place in the same made-up region of Japan during the events of the manga/anime, so I'll be referencing those events from time to time… and might include some of the canon characters in these chapters. No spoilers for now; but keep that in mind. Hey did you know that the made-up Japanese city name for MHA "Musatafu" is actually a pun on the planet Mustafar from Star Wars?! Yeah! Awesome, right?! Was inspired by a friend of mine to write an OC-focused fic from MHA, since they did the same. This is sort of an original story more than a fanfiction so if you don't like OC-heavy fics with lotsa words then I would advise you leave. Thank you and happy reading. :)**

 **~9o9~**

The streets of Musutafu Japan laid bare in the crescent moonlit sky… but of course that was only because those who live a life of sin wait for all the good people to head back to their lovely safe homes and crawl out of their hiding holes to seize their opportunity to make a profit.

A Siren woman with long flowing blue hair with scale-covered legs crept forward, leading a group of four lead behind her as she weaved through the glowing nightlights of the sleeping city. While the city indeed was asleep, that didn't mean all lights were off on the streets- there were assigned all-nighter heroes on alert out for criminals like the Siren's pack.

But of course, they don't care, for profit was the only thing on their minds as the Siren promised them so. As she weaved through the streetlights, the short green-haired girl in the purple kimono among the group winced as her Shamisen guitar handle banged against one of the trash bins as the Siren made a hard left, leading the gang towards the bank. The rest of the group gave her snarls and visible warnings and the girl rolled her eyes, as if she cared. If all of them were caught all their efforts wouldn't matter in the long run.

The Siren then raised a hand, stopping the pack against the corner of the building and ran ahead, scouting both sides of the sidewalk if anyone else were present. Then she raised her hand again and pointed to one of the group members with a dog's head. Quickly he jumped on all fours and ran up to her, sniffing the air and confirmed her theory- there were no one around. Then the Siren lifted a hand and motioned them forward, and the rest followed.

A Siren, a Dog, a young girl with a Shamisen, a chameleon-like humanoid with red skin, and a ghost girl with the ability to go through anything stood in front of the city bank upon its sidewalk, its lights out and its windows barred tight. Immediately the Siren turned to the Ghost Girl and she floated forward and through the entrance of the building. Immediately the chameleon followed, disappearing within view thanks to his quirk and began picking at the lock using his long claws should the ghost girl fail to find the key to the door while the rest hid behind the dark side of the building.

However immediately as soon as the remaining three criminals hid, footsteps were immediately heard. Quickly the chameleon froze, able to shrink his claws back into his nails as he stood in front of the bank entrance, eerily still as using his pinkie he tapped the door lightly three times, signaling the ghost girl inside that someone was outside.

A Pro Hero- Best Jeanist, was patrolling the streets, adjusting and opening the belt suspending his denim mouth-warmer to create an opening as he breathed loudly, creating a small puff of smoke from his mouth then quickly shutting it immediately.

"How unfortunate winter offers so limited variety of clothing. Then again, their selection isn't too bad." Jeanist adjusted his belt again and stared closely at the entrance to the city bank, leering upon any trace of criminal activity.

The chameleon grew tense, clenching his teeth as Jeanist stared upon the entrance for a long time until he found nothing, not a single trace, then shifted his attention elsewhere and continued walking forward.

"A shame, really, for winter's often a time for vacation and spending time with loved ones. A fixed, tight-belted agenda, often a requirement to those who don't choose to rest in this sleepy weather." Jeanist spoke again and turned to the door, which _now_ he noticed something out of the ordinary- a reptilian _claw._

"Especially for people like _you_." Jeanist swiped an arm forward and the fibers upon his clothing immediately jutted outwards and aimed straight for the camouflaged reptile, restraining his arms to his chest immediately. The chameleon's red skin immediately became visible to the Pro Hero's eyes as he dragged him forward to his view.

"So distasteful in attire. Then again all criminals like you are _always_ dressed in rags!" Jeanist lurched him forward and flicked his arm back, sending the chameleon straight against the pavement, calculatingly avoided throwing him against buildings for property's sake. The criminal snarled and immediately disappeared again as the threads keeping him restrained were sliced as Jeanist held his threads at the ready, waiting for the animal to pounce.

"Shameful, unpleasant, offensive. These are the traits that make up a badly dressed criminal." Jeanist shifted his eyes back as he noticed the Reptile move behind him before he could strike and brought his hand behind him, managing to snag the Reptile by the waist and dragged him forward towards the Pro Hero's face, leering at him. "Dreadfully brutish peoplelike you must be reformed."

The dog criminal howled, causing Best Jeanist's attention to shift elsewhere towards the dog as he charged towards the man and tackled him to the ground. As Jeanist attempted to weave threads from his denim clothing, the dog snarled at him and drenched his hands with saliva, causing his grip upon his threads to loosen and slip. Jeanist wrinkled his nose as the Chameleon immediately was set free and charged back towards the door, which the Ghost Girl had thankfully managed to open in time. The dog restrained the Pro Hero and howled, notifying Siren and the girl of the news and the Siren, now smirking with victory as she quickly turned to the girl and motioned her to wait outside as she snuck in the bank entrance.

"Wha- there's a Pro Hero out there!" The girl snarled; pointing straight at the restrained hero, whose threads had slowly began weaving around the dog criminal, wrapping around his limbs very slowly so that he wouldn't notice.

"And you'll be the one to keep him out of our way with Osamu's help. See? He's doing his job, so you should do yours." The Siren pointed to the dog restraining the hero then quickly rushed inside, leaving the girl behind.

"Psh, yeah, and I'll watch you all gallantly fail at doing everything for me as a _Pro Hero_ kicks all your guys' asses." Aiko Hikari rolled her eyes, crossing her arms as she strummed the two strings upon her Shamisen. Sighing, she leaned against the bank's walls and watched as Osamu restraining the Pro Hero suddenly was thrown off as Jeanist lifted him with his threads, wrapping his limbs tightly around his mouth and clamping his lips shut.

"Abusing my threads with drool so I wouldn't be able to weave; clever, but disgusting. You should be taught a thing or two about _personal hygiene_." Jeanist flicked his left hand upon the threads suspending Osamu, causing another set of strings to wrap around his body into a tightly-knit cocoon as with his other hand he checked his phone, contacting any Pro Hero nearby to assist. "Five of them, outside of Musatfu Bank. I've got one, the others won't be too hard."

Then he stepped forward, stepping in towards the bank but was met with resistance as the Chameleon suddenly jumped straight at him, grabbing his face and attempting to rip his head out of his denim neck-warmer.

"Oh really now, I like my neck-warmer." Threads immediately restrained the chameleon as the Pro Hero stared straight into its multi-colored eyes, his expression calm and emotionless but his glare all-the-more threatening. "I would loathe they be ripped by some foreign reptile."

However the chameleon's claws were sharp and he managed to slash his way through and immediately attempted to free Osamu, jumping nimbly in his direction but was swatted away immediately.

"Friends and fellow criminals aren't the same thing! You should think wiser before planning to commit a life of sin! Because if you don't-" Jeanist snagged the reptile by the collar with his own hand, squeezing the fabric tightly. " _You'll be left behind_."

* * *

"Hurry! Ichigo, the passcode!" The Siren called to the floating girl as she hovered over towards the electrical passcode-lock for the safe after digging her hand through the drawers of the bank owner's private office and dialed the number according to the slip of paper she found. The lock dinged in recognition and the safe door burst open, allowing the Siren and the girl to step inside.

"That rewards you another strawberry, Ghost Girl." The Siren reached into her pocket and flung a strawberry behind her head as Ichigo caught it, stuffing it hungrily down her throat. Quickly the Siren then reached over to her hips to extend out long scaled flaps from her legs and stuffed the money within them as much as she could fit, then enclosing them deep within the folds of the scales. Quickly she turned to Ichigo and nodded, then sprinted forward outside and greeting Aiko at the entrance.

"We got enough! Tell the others to fall back!" The Siren ordered, dashing forward with Ichigo floating along.

"Why don't _you_ do it? _You're_ the leader." Aiko complained, growing tense as she watched the Chameleon be held by the collar by the Pro Hero.

"Oh come on, just do this one last thing for me and I promise I won't burden you with commands from me anymore." The Siren grinned in an attempt at sympathy, but she was lying through her teeth as Aiko noticed.

" _Damn adults_." Aiko snarled and brought both of her hands to her mouth to amplify her voice. "HEY ANIMALS! WE GOT WHAT WE CAME HERE FOR! LET'S GET OUTTA HERE! ORDERS FROM MIZU!"

Immediately the Chameleon turned to Osamu and managed to rip open his bonds, allowing him to escape as Chameleon rode upon his back.

"Do you honestly think you can outrun a _Pro Hero_?" Jeanist flicked his fingers again and the threads immediately flew towards them in blinding speed.

Quickly Aiko sprinted forward briskly and brought her hands outwards, creating a large purple portal that sucked the threads in and forcefully closed it, severing them.

"Oh?" Jeanist adjusted the belt upon his neck-warmer, tightening it.

Aiko panted heavily, out of breath as it took all of her strength to sprint to where she was at and realized she was dangerously vulnerable at that very moment.

"You're a new face to the criminal scene. I don't recall we've met, little one." Jeanist then sent another array of threads forward and Aiko used her quirk again to sever them.

"Ah, so a quirk of misplacement, then- to sever my threads by transporting them elsewhere, such a useful mischievous quirk for a criminal like you." Jeanist taunted as Aiko continued to throw portals upon the threads, buying her partners time as well as attempting to stand toe-to-toe with a Pro Hero, the _3_ _rd_ _-ranked_ one at that.

"You think your legacy and your abilities scare me?" Aiko sneered, teleporting herself up upon Jeanist's back and tackling him to the ground, restraining his arms. "I'm not afraid of any damn hero."

"You shouldn't be. We heroes aren't meant to be feared, but to be loved." Jeanist then used the same technique as he used with Osamu by weaving the threads silently around Aiko's limbs.

But they were immediately severed as Aiko cut the threads and as she forcefully closed the portals around her, creating a circular-shaped portal around the two of them. "I know how Pro heroes work, I've got their quirks memorized as soon as I meet em'. I know your quirk involves using the threads of your clothes." Sneering mischievously, she brought a circular portal that was dangerously growing bigger and bigger above Jeanist's head. "Let's see what happens when I get em' off."

"Best Jeanist!" Several voices in unison were heard, causing Aiko to look upwards to find several Pro Heroes making their way towards them as she noticed Mt. Lady and Kamui Woods make their way towards them, Mt. Lady in particular the easiest to notice thanks to her large form as Kamui Woods began swinging from place to place using his branched limbs.

Snarling, Aiko then slammed her teleporting orb down the Pro Hero's head, closing up the surrounding portal space around him in the process, but Jeanist used this opportunity to snag the buckle suspending the Shamisen upon her back using his now-free threads and release the strap, causing her instrument to clatter to the ground. The girl's eyes growing wide in fear, Aiko quickly reached for the guitar, clutching it protectively to her chest as Jeanist managed to throw her off and caught her wrist. Snarling, Aiko used a portal to sever the bonds but Kamui Woods then wrapped his branches around her body threateningly, squeezing her mercilessly.

"I won't kill you, but I won't hesitate to do what's necessary to restrain a criminal." Kamui Woods responded forcefully as Aiko groaned in pain.

"I… won't submit to the fools who dress up in stupid costumes to please their ignorant crowd… I'll beat you all and teach you all a lesson…" Aiko growled but that only tightened Kamui Woods' grip.

"Oh dear, Nishiya, you're getting carried away again. She's just a little girl." Mt. Lady coaxed him, attempting to soothe the tension as she hunched over to get a close glimpse of the scene. "You wouldn't want to take the credit of accidentally killing her, now, would you?"

"I'll take it from here." Jeanist stepped forward, flicking his fingers again as threads began weaving from his clothing. Aiko snarled at him and with her draining strength she created another portal- but this time instead enveloping her arms and limbs through the branches of Kamui Woods' grip.

"She's- she's gone!" Kamui Woods cried in disbelief, staring at his now-empty branches.

"Well maybe if you weren't so adamant about restraining her and getting all the credit for it instead of handing her over to _me_ , then she wouldn't have escaped!" Mt. Lady snapped, crossing her large arms.

"Well if you weren't being so showy and LARGE in the MIDDLE of a WINTER NIGHT then I would've given her to you!" Kamui Woods snapped. "And I know YOU care only about getting MY credit when it comes to showing off when it was MY idea all along that we should help Jeanist!"

"You care only about getting all the credit too, you know! So you're guilty too!" Mt. Lady snapped at him.

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"All right, cut it out, you two. Right now, we _all_ are capable of taking credit. But _we_ , as a team will work together to find this girl and the rest of her crew. Now let's move." Jeanist ordered.

Mt. Lady yawned, her eyes growing dreary with wear. "I'm getting sleepy. What time is it?"

"Are you kidding me?!" Kamui Woods sighed, rubbing his wooden forehead as he followed Jeanist, Mt. Lady stomping loudly behind him as he muttered curses to himself. "Why do I work with this woman?!"

 **~9o9~**

 **And that's a rap, y'all! First chapter. I hope I didn't make the characters you recognized OOC, but tell me what you think! Anyway, review so I don't feel lonely, comment, yadda, yadda, yadda, school's comin' up for me so I won't be posting much but I'll try to update at least every Sunday. I won't guarantee EVERY Sunday, but I will post new chapters for this story on a Sunday. Any Sunday. I like Sunday. It's a good day. I like good days. I don't get much of them. Anyway, Noir signing off, PEACE!**


	2. Chapter 2: Left Behind

**Chapter 2: Left Behind**

 **AN: Hey! Noir here again, updating on a Sunday! I managed to keep my promise, y'all! Well anyway enjoy Ch 2.**

 **~9o9~**

Aiko panted heavily, resting her head against a long wall side in an alleyway full of trash and broken bottles scattered across the ground as she clutched her Shamisen close to her chest, fearing she'll lose it again.

 _That bastard…_ Messing with her Shamisen like that. _Oh he'll pay; oh he'll so pay._

"Aiko!" A voice called, and Aiko looked up to see the rest of her group catch up to her, Mizu in the front as expected.

"Are you all right, are you hurt?" Mizu asked, gently brushing her shoulders in an attempt to find any wounds although her voice of concern seemed forced, as Aiko could tell from its tone, reminding her of the way she spoken to her earlier about carrying her commands over to Soichiro the Chameleon and Osamu.

"I'm _fine_." Aiko brushed her off, crossing her arms and avoiding her gaze. "You left me _behind_."

"Of course we did, we're criminals-" Soichiro piped up but Mizu silenced him, threateningly gazing at him should he speak again. Then, sweetly, she reverted to a smiling expression in front of Aiko.

"I'm _so sorry_." Mizu soothed her, bending down to meet her lower height. "I promise I won't do that again."

"Stop lying through your teeth, I've had enough of your bullshit. I'm not a _child_." Aiko snapped; growing annoyed as she absentmindedly stroked the two strings of her Shamisen. "I don't _want_ to be treated like a child."

"But you're _my_ child. A member of our pack." Mizu raised her arms forward in an attempt to embrace her, which caused Aiko's eyes to grow wide in fear and she pushed her away, threatening to hit her with the instrument.

"DON'T TALK LIKE THAT! I AM NOT YOUR CHILD!" Aiko shrieked, shaking uncontrollably. "I am not ANYONE's CHILD!"

"Aiko…" Mizu began but Osamu stopped her, panting as he attempted to ease the situation. Mizu sighed and turned back to Aiko, whom had begun lowering the Shamisen in realization of revealing signs of her weakness.

"Fine, you are not my child." Mizu sighed and turned back to the rest of the team, then back. "Then that means you are no longer a member of our pack. Get lost."

"Wh- you can't do that!" Aiko cried, stepping forward. "I _saved_ you all from getting arrested! It's because of _me_ you all aren't behind bars!"

"And it's _you_ who needs to go. I'm sorry, Aiko." Mizu shook her head and began walking away, causing the rest of the pack to follow as they left Aiko in the dirty alleyway.

Snarling, Aiko kicked a nearby trash bin, spilling its contents. 5th time. This was the _5_ _th_ time she got kicked out of a group, criminal or not. No one wanted her. No one could even _tolerate_ her.

It was just like before. She was alone again.

Sinking to her knees and carefully avoiding any broken glass, Aiko brought them close to her chest, tears falling down her eyes. Perhaps she was cursed to roam the streets of Japan alone. Alone from birth, alone as an elder. From start to finish, it would never end.

Aiko cradled the two-stringed instrument in her hands, and then strummed its threads. They barely made any tangible tune but they comforted her. Slowly, the winter breeze began gnawing away at her lightly clothed skin as she was only dressed in a kimono and a thin-sleeved shirt underneath, and her petite body couldn't suffice for enough warmth to live in. Nevertheless she had nothing else as she closed her eyes, attempting to sleep.

The crescent moon laid low in the sky, allowing it to illuminate the lower-sectioned streets as Aiko noticed its moonlight illuminate her skin. She grinned slightly, thinking nature itself was shining a light on possible hope- possible hope she might have and gain. But for what, though, she didn't know.

But what she _did_ know was that she now wasn't alone as a ghostly presence floated above her, her long violet locks flowing down her shoulders as her pastel pink dress flowed gently in the winter breeze.

Ichigo smiled as soon as Aiko looked up, meeting her gaze. The Ghost Girl then stared at her Shamisen and back at the girl wielding it.

"Let me guess," Aiko began, narrowing her eyes at the girl floating above her. "You want to look at this."

"But of course, who wouldn't after hearing you play so off-tune like that?" Ichigo laughed, then reached through Aiko's shoulder to pull the Shamisen strap off of her.

"Hey!" Aiko cried, reaching for it desperately but Ichigo already had it in her hands, strumming the instrument with utter fascination.

"How interesting, a Shamisen with TWO strings!" She turned to Aiko with a teasing expression. "You know Shamisen guitars usually have THREE strings."

"Well _mine_ has two." Aiko snapped, managing to snag the strap of the guitar and yanked it out of Ichigo's grasp as she once again wrapped it around her chest protectively. "And if you dare question that fact I'll make sure you'll _regret_ it."

"You're not good at threatening people, aren't you?" Ichigo grinned, attempting to cheer Aiko up as the girl sat back down in the same fetal position. "Come on, you need to let go of disappointment. It's not good for your health."

"Says the Ghost Girl who's already _dead_." Aiko snapped.

This comment hurt Ichigo as she turned her back, a sad expression upon her face. Aiko realized her mistake as she looked up at the girl, regretting what she spoke.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that." Aiko raised a hand in forgiveness. Hesitating, then eventually relenting, Ichigo took it. Aiko grew surprised to find that Ichigo's skin had substance and was extremely soft to the touch.

"My skin can be felt by others if I so wished." Ichigo acknowledged Aiko's fascination as she stared at her hand. "I'm not just a simple transparent ghost."

"I wonder… how you ended up like this." Aiko wondered aloud.

"It's a long story, but should you ever find yourself curious, ask me again when the time is right." Ichigo then released her grip on Aiko and slowly began to float away.

"Wait, Ichigo-" Aiko began, attempting to put words in her head to speak. Ichigo turned, awaiting what she had to say. "Why did you… keep me company like that?"

Ichigo smiled gently. "Perhaps I know what it's like to be lonely and abandoned by everyone. But don't worry about that, that's only a temporary feeling. I'm sure you'll find people you like being with, like the way I did."

Ichigo then disappeared, leaving Aiko once again alone. Aiko strummed the two strings of her Shamisen again, grinning slightly yet still deeply saddened. Ichigo left her, the same as Mizu.

 _Typical_.

Suddenly, light footsteps were heard outside of the alleyway as Aiko noticed a small nimble form began running forward, out towards the low moon above. Quickly Aiko rose to her feet and ran to find whoever was running and she noticed that it was a girl- or rather, a girl that looked eerily similar to Ichigo.

An Ichigo that was _alive_ and breathing and _not transparent in the slightest_.

Quickly, Aiko dashed forward, attempting to catch up with the running girl. Her pastel dress flowed along the sidewalk and was easily visible as she turned corners. Aiko tried desperately to catch up with her but found that the more Ichigo ran, the faster she was growing.

Quickly Ichigo turned a sharp corner, which caused Aiko to bang her Shamisen against it again. Cursing to herself, Aiko pressed forward in a vain attempt to keep up with the girl, desperately wondering why Ichigo was alive… in the flesh… or at least, know what the hell was going on.

Quickly Ichigo turned a sharp corner _again_ and Aiko followed, eventually leading to a graveyard. Unnerved, Aiko then stepped forward into the land of the buried dead, looking around cautiously for Ichigo. It occurred to her that she maybe _should_ get back… for if she woke the dead who _knows_ what might happen.

The winter breeze rustled the leaves of the dead's soil, causing Aiko to yelp in fear. Clutching her Shamisen closely to her chest with an arm to comfort herself, Aiko then pressed onward, bringing her other free arm's hand up to her mouth to amplify her voice.

"Ichigo? Where are you?" Aiko asked, her voice shaking with fear. "You know it's not polite to wander among the soil of the dead at this hour, right? I know you're a ghost and everything but come on, this isn't funny!"

Suddenly the soil crunched under Aiko's boots, which caused her to freeze in horror.

Silence.

Aiko desperately darted her eyes around in the dark sky, which she noticed that the moonlight from before hadn't shined its light upon this land. Finding this odd, Aiko stepped backwards, backing herself back to the entrance of the graveyard, the crunching noises she now realized was just her heavy steps upon the soil.

"I-I gotta go, Ichigo. I don't think I should stay here any longer…" Aiko began but as soon as she stepped on a branch, it snapped.

This frightened the hell out of her and she shrieked, the Shamisen yanking against her back painfully as Aiko used her quirk to teleport the branch away, fearing it was a supernatural creature. Once realizing her foolishness, she rolled her eyes and growled.

"Being all jumpy and scared is gonna kill me of fright." Aiko commented and turned her back on the graveyard. " _That's it_ , Ichigo, I'm _done_ with your games. I'm going now."

"Games? What games?" Ichigo's voice was heard behind her as Aiko turned her head, suddenly jumping back while crying out in fear.

Instead of the girl in the flesh, it was Ichigo back to her ghostly self, transparent and all. Aiko's mouth dropped open and she pointed at her in disbelief.

"B-But… h-how… What…" Aiko stammered, attempting to make sense of what she was seeing. "But I saw you- I saw you in the flesh, alive-"

"Alive? Aiko, are you sure you've gotten enough rest?" Ichigo tilted her head, confused, and rather skeptical over Aiko's health. "You should see a doctor."

"I know what I saw! You were _alive_ , damn it! Not transparent at all!" Aiko cried, adamant. "I'm not making this up, Ichigo! I _saw_ you!"

"I think you _do_ need rest _and_ a doctor." Ichigo took Aiko's hand and dragged her forward onto the sidewalk illuminated by city lights.

"Hey, let go of me! Maybe that wasn't you, but we need to find _her_! In the Graveyard! Let me go, damn it!" Aiko cried but Ichigo ignored her, dragging her through the city as she looked around, looking for a warm acceptable building to stay to escape the biting winter cold. Eventually she couldn't find any places that met her standards and eventually decided, that it would be best to lead her back to her group of friends, _especially_ back to the woman who gave her a strawberry.

On one of the buildings suspended high above the two girls, the three Pro Heroes looked upon them; Mt. Lady's hands were firmly upon a pair of binoculars as she watched their every move.

"I s-saw them- I s-saw them walk into a graveyard…" Mt. Lady gaped in disbelief, pointing straight at the graveyard while shaking uncontrollably, pulling the binoculars back out of her head. "T-Those kids… walked _straight_ into a graveyard…"

"You're seeing things!" Kamui Woods snapped, growing annoyed as he grabbed the binoculars out of the woman's hands. "Those kids wouldn't be _that_ dumb!"

"I SAW them, Nishiya! That Ghost Girl in the flesh too! That Shamisen girl's right, you know!" Mt. Lady hugged her arms, shaking. "Just the possibility of it all makes me s-scared."

"YOU?! SCARED?!" Kamui Woods burst out laughing, nearly dropping the binoculars off the building but managed to catch them by its strap with one hand. He used the other to point at Mt. Lady mockingly. "Well LOOK at our PRO HEROINE! ALL SCARED, now, AREN'T YOU?" He rolled his eyes. "GHOSTS aren't REAL, idiot! We're HEROES, not scaredy-cats! We're not supposed to be afraid of anything!"

"Well the pink-dressed girl most certainly _is_ a ghost." Best Jeanist retorted; sitting nicely upon a chair and table conveniently set up on the roof, his legs and arms crossed.

"Since when was he sitting on…" Mt. Lady commented upon Jeanist as Kamui Woods rolled his eyes.

"I'm a realist, not a believer! I don't believe in such horrid things." Kamui Woods continued to stare out upon his binoculars, watching the two girls closely.

"Oh Nishiya, you keep staring at those girls so intently like that people are gonna think you're a pedophile." Mt. Lady snickered, bringing a hand to her mouth to sustain her uncontrollable laughter.

Kamui Woods's eyes grew wide in horror as he twisted his head back at the woman, dropping the binoculars in the process. This time he didn't catch them and they smashed into pieces upon impact.

Back on the floor, Aiko heard the crash.

"What was that?" She asked Ichigo, who was keeping watch behind her back as she motioned her forward.

"I don't know." She shrugged.

"It's a good thing that I believe they don't know it's us." Best Jeanist set his tea aside as Mt. Lady burst out laughing, hunching over and unable to control her mirth.

"YOU DAMN WOMAN! I AM SO SICK OF YOUR COMMENTS!" Kamui Woods cried out in horror, shaking in embarrassment.

"Oh you're hilarious, Nishiya, oh my goodness, oh, I'm dying!" Mt. Lady slammed her fist against the bricks upon the house, destroying them in the process, causing the shards to crumble down against the pavement that which Ichigo _now_ heard.

"What was _that_?" Ichigo asked, turning her head upwards.

"I didn't hear anything." Aiko shrugged, this time, not hearing the noise.

"Honestly now, you two need to stop making such a ruckus, both girls would've _certainly_ heard the noise you two are making." Best Jeanist rolled his eyes as Mt. Lady continued to burst out laughing, Kamui Woods cursing for even signing up to work with that woman as the denim-dressed man sighed.

He stood up and gazed upon the criminal duo himself, using his well-trained eyes to continue his gaze along their path.

Ichigo had lead Aiko to an abandoned warehouse, far out in the outskirts of Musatafu City where they wouldn't be seen or caught by the authorities as Best Jeanist had lost track of their trajectory as he swore under his breath, frustrated. Turning his head to berate the two heroes for distracting him and not saving him the liberty of doing things himself, he noticed that the two of them now were soundly asleep, Kamui Woods snoring loudly. The denim-dressed man sighed and stood up, walking towards the entrance of the roof leading downstairs into the apartment complex they were on top of, tempted to leave the two of them in the cold. But he eventually surrendered to his kindness and dragged them along with him with considerable difficulty, with Mt. Lady in particular extremely hard to fit through the door even though she had already returned to her normal size.

But Jeanist's efforts were worth it in the end so long as he and his friends were safe and warm for now, and they would be ready to continue their search for the criminals of this night tomorrow morning.

 **~9o9~**


	3. Chapter 3: Thank You

**Chapter 3: Thank You**

 **AN: Another Sunday knocked again! Wow, I'm getting really good at this… I hope to continue this trend. Anyway, school began and, well, my Physics teacher is a Ghibli Fan! How cool is that?! He even has a No-Face poster! Man, I realize I talk a lot… Probably you guys want me to shut up now, so I'll do so. Enjoy Chapter 3! :)**

 **~9o9~**

Among the graveyard of the sleeping souls of the night, slowly, the soil upon the Earth's ground began shifting, moving slowly aligning with the tombstones as bluish forms slowly began rising from their sleep, yawning and stretching their transparent limbs to meet the night sky. They appeared distressed; bothered by what transpired a few hours ago after Ichigo took Aiko out of the graveyard.

Among them, the tallest soul whom appeared as the leader brought his hand along the crushed leaves the Shamisen girl had stepped on and cradled them in his transparent hands, then crushed them and sent the bits flying with the wind.

"A soul among the living has trespassed through this sacred land, awakening our peaceful slumber." The soul's face twisted into a snarl, rather bothered by this fact. "One who trespasses among the Yurei's soil in which she's forgotten to pay her respects deserves her inevitable punishment."

"Oh Rei." Another soul teased, whom was an old woman smoking a bamboo pipe as she floated among the awakened souls, smiling brightly at them to cheer them up. "We are not _Yurei_ , we are not disturbed souls out for vengeance in return for the violent ways we died, we played our part in the living and had died peacefully." She pinched a small child in the cheek as punishment for she had stolen her brother's hat, who whined at first, then giggled. "We are _Reikon_ , we are departed restful souls. We have no need for taking revenge against those who don't respect the dead. That only leads to suffering and fear, a prolonged existence of unrest and pain among both the living and dead. You don't wish to cause distress among both worlds, now, do you?"

"Life is cruel, why should the afterlife be any different? Besides life itself among the living's just as the same as being dead in hell." Rei crossed his arms, still bothered by the human who trespassed through their soil.

"Unless, of course, you choose to go to Heaven." The old woman joked to humor Rei, but he ignored her. She sighed sympathetically. "You need to let go of the past. Even though you died protecting your family whom you love, they're among you now. You didn't die in vain."

"Not everyone among my family agrees." Rei crossed his arms, his bluish transparent magenta locks blowing in the winter breeze. "My daughter's not here."

"Aye, a wandering soul among the living. But she's your daughter, you must respect her choices-"

"But it's the Shamisen girl who's causing her to grow farther apart!" Rei snapped, his voice raising. " _She's_ the reason why my daughter's not home!"

"Rei-"

But the soul cut her off as he snapped his fingers. Two tall strong Samurai men whom still were dressed in the armor of early modern Japan rose from the graveyard's soil, ready to serve their master.

"You will find them. _Both_ of them before the next full moon." He ordered and the soldiers stared at each other, surprised and confused of the command they were given.

"And what makes you think we are worthy of your servitude to disturb the living?" One of the soldiers with blue hair raised his eyebrows, skeptical.

"My daughter is among them, and you know what happens to a soul who doesn't return by the next Full Moon." Rei warned them, and the two soldiers stared at each other, knowing that answer.

"Then you trust us to act in your stead, sir?" The other purple-haired soldier asked, burying his katana into the ground to create a pact.

"I would trust to know what awaits you should you fail!" Rei snapped and the two men sighed, knowing full well that the man would only burden the rest of the dead should he not be satisfied in what he wants. Taking to the skies, the two souls immediately traveled through Musutafu City, weaving through the city lights by causing them to flicker, and traveled among the souls who were still awake at this hour. Raising both their swords, they headed straight for the freight container where Aiko and Ichigo were; ready to pounce at the opportune moment.

* * *

Aiko awoke to hear heavy panting above her head, slobber dripping down her cheeks. Groaning, she pulled herself up only to find Osamu staring straight at her, his face leaning in dangerously close to her own as he wondered how the hell she managed to find her way back. Recognizing the dog, Aiko jumped back in horror.

"O-Osamu?!" Aiko cried, shaking in fear. "What are you doing here?!"

"I would ask the same to _you_ , Aiko." Mizu Josei crossed her arms, narrowing her eyes in disgust. "I thought I told you to _get lost_."

"But I didn't bring _myself here_ -" Aiko suddenly remembered who _did and_ looked around frantically. "Where's Ichigo?!"

"Somewhere where she _does belong_." Soichiro Iroshi rolled his eyes, cursing as the game he was playing on his 3DS caused his vehicle on screen to crash into walls, which Aiko assumed was "Mario Kart".

Clasping her Shamisen instrument's strap upon her shoulders and unsatisfied, Aiko pushed Mizu aside, stepping out towards the exit of the space they were in, which was a large dusty room with old worn mattresses sprawled out in their limited space as small beams of light illuminated through the cracks of the freight's walls, giving organic light to illuminate Aiko's surroundings as well as stuffy but breathable oxygen. Quickly she continued walking but Mizu brought a hand to her shoulder.

"Where do you think you're going?" She demanded, stopping her even when the Shamisen girl struggled against her.

"Getting lost, just like you said, only taking Ichigo with me." Aiko managed to grab ahold of the woman's hand and threw it away, which caused Mizu with her other hand to grab Aiko's other shoulder, this time, by the arm, and drag her back. Aiko growled and attempted to fight back but was only restrained even more.

"You want to show yourself and get arrested by the Pro Heroes waiting outside? Some tiny thinking _you_ possess. And Ichigo's getting rid of them for us, just as we told her to."

"There are no Pro Heroes outside." Aiko rolled her eyes, not believing a word Mizu said and Mizu sighed and tightened her grip upon the petite girl's shoulder, which caused her to cry in pain.

"For goodness sake, Aiko, you're a child! You never listen to what adults tell you, don't you?!" Mizu snapped, losing her composure.

"Why should I when I can tell you're a liar and only wish to question me more?! I'm not stupid, Mizu! I know damn well you _are_ a liar." Aiko snapped, then using her teleportation quirk, she teleported out of Mizu's grip and met her gaze again, this time in a threatening manner. "Now where _is_ Ichigo?!"

Mizu sighed, then pointed out to the exit of the freight container, which was marked with the word "EXIT" in big red letters.

"Don't say I didn't warn you what laid outside." Mizu shook her head and sat down upon her mattress, kicking up dust and cradling her forehead in disappointment.

Aiko rolled her eyes but taking Mizu's warning into consideration, she decided that she would raise her weapon and slowly brought her hand to her Shamisen, pulling out its long Katana suspended upon the top of the instrument and unsheathed it, gripping it tightly and holding it out in front of her as she stepped forward towards the exit, bringing her hand along the wheel that served as the door's locking mechanism only to find it wouldn't budge. Snarling, Aiko tried with all of her strength to turn it, pulling it with her limited strength but found that she wasn't strong enough as she released her grip, giving up. She then conjured up a portal the size of herself and immediately saw what was outside, which she noticed the sun had come up. She stepped forward, finally managing to breathe a gust of fresh air.

Grinning, Aiko stretched her arms and looked around, pointing her katana at anything that moved. It occurred to her that Ichigo had taken her back to Mizu and the others because she had no one else, which ended the both of them up at an old abandoned railroad construction site, its freight containers sprawled out in a linear fashion and its passenger cars worn in disrepair. Now that Japan had the intricate Monorail train system, there was no need for these old versions.

"Ichigo?" Aiko called, looking around. Maybe Mizu was right and there _were_ Pro Heroes around.

Pressing onward, Aiko tried her luck in passing through the construction site, which she discovered more and more freight containers lined up next to the one she had came out of. They've all been lined up in a fashion in which they resembled hallways should one walk in the space between two of them, which made pinpointing any enemies nearby all the more difficult as Aiko traversed through them.

"Ichigo, come on, you brought me back to the one group of people who don't want me and you expect to just leave me content with that? Stop playing hide and seek with me and come over here." Aiko snapped, growing impatient.

Suddenly, an ear-splitting scraping against one of the freight cars screeched through the built hallway as Aiko groaned, covering her ears.

"I've got the feeling that wasn't you." Aiko reached into her pocket to pull out the two strings tied up in an hourglass-shaped clasp, tying them around her wrist.

The scraping noise was heard again and was growing closer. Aiko tensed and held her weapon at the ready, ready to strike at anything that jumped out at her, ignoring the fact that Ichigo was also out there. Her senses were already high on alert as she were defenseless without them.

Then loud stomping noises were heard on top of the freights, causing Aiko to tense in fear. Whatever was out there, they were certainly heavy. Could they be ghosts, angry at her for setting foot on sacred land? No, that was stupid. Or was the noise by the giant lady Pro Heroine last night? Either way, she was in danger.

"So we meet again, Aiko Hikari." A voice spoke.

Aiko recognized that voice. But before she could do anything about it, thousands of branches flew in her direction, ripping through the limited space. Aiko raised her katana and slashed at the branches, managing to sever them in half. However they merely served as a distraction to back her away as two hands clasped her shoulders, gripping vital threads upon her clothes as their fingers carefully snagged them out of place.

" _You_." Aiko hissed, looking up to meet the gaze of Best Jeanist behind her.

* * *

Mt. Lady awoke to find herself in a neat but small apartment room; her limbs sprawled out along the small bed inside. Kamui Woods was sleeping soundly beside her, unaware of the misplacement. The woman smirked and decided to poke him on the nose. Kamui Woods twitched but wasn't bothered as he was wearing a helmet and Mt. Lady giggled, poking him again. She then reached into the eye holes to poke him in the eyes but by then the Pro Hero's eyes were already open and as soon as he saw the giant finger heading for his eyes he shrieked in terror, falling off the bed. Mt. Lady burst out laughing.

"You damn woman! I would've lost my eyesight if you actually put your finger through them!" Kamui Woods hissed, raising a fist.

"Oh, it was worth it though! Hahaha, you fell of the bed, oh, oh my goodness, ahahahahaha!" Mt. Lady continued to laugh, and Kamui Woods sighed, pulling himself up. The two of them were in an apartment complex of some sort and someone had dragged them into a room.

"Who brought us here?" Kamui Woods wondered aloud as Mt. Lady fixed her bodice and her collar, distracting the Pro Hero for a moment then looked away.

"I think that answer is obvious enough." Best Jeanist entered the room through the door, bringing in a tray of green tea and set it on the counter. Mt. Lady immediately took the largest couch nearby and Kamui Woods upon the foot of the bed as they grabbed their teacups, sipping hungrily.

"HOOOOT!" Mt. Lady shrieked, burning her tongue.

"That's why you blow first, woman!" Kamui Woods snapped, only to find that he couldn't even drink his tea because of his helmet. Cursing to himself, he attempted to remove it, only to find curious looks upon him from both Mt. Lady and Best Jeanist.

"D-Don't look at my face!" He cried, turning his head away as he opened his helmet away from their glance and drank his tea silently.

"Awww, but I really wanna see what you look like underneath!" Mt. Lady whined and Kamui Woods closed his helmet, meeting her gaze.

"Well you won't like it and I don't want you to!"

"Oh, _you_ think so? Well how about I try ripping that thing off and have my say on that, now, wouldn't _that_ be fair?" Mt. Lady reached for his face and Kamui Woods ducked in horror, causing his back to hit the mattress and Mt. Lady straddling on top of him, her hands firmly upon his helmet.

"I believe it's a little early for passionate affair." Best Jeanist commented on Mt. Lady's position, and the woman gazed upon the man underneath her, causing her to giggle.

"It is. After all, I hardly know you in _that_ way compared to all the other men." Mt. Lady laughed and got off of him, causing him to blush uncontrollably and remain silent for a long period of time, refusing to meet her gaze as he muttered " _What other men?_ "

Best Jeanist set his cup on the table gently, then fixed the buckle upon his neck warmer. "While you two were busy in Dreamland, snoring, I managed to pinpoint the location where our criminals are."

"Is that so?" Mt. Lady asked as the denim-dressed man set a piece of paper on the table, resembling a diagram of a plan he was going to initiate.

"Indeed. Now listen closely." He brought their heads together and once the three of them were gathered and Kamui Woods finally having the courage to be next to Mt. Lady again, the denim-dressed Pro Hero explained his plan.

* * *

"So this was it, huh, to lure me into a tight space and play with my fears to lead me straight into your hands?" Aiko narrowed her eyes, still keeping a firm grip upon her weapon as Best Jeanist twisted his fingers through the threads of her kimono. "How typical."

"I wonder why you value that two-stringed Shamisen so dearly, to the point where it cost you to let me go before." Jeanist gripped the leather strap of the instrument, causing Aiko to tense.

"You lay a finger on that I'll _kill_ you." Aiko snapped, whipping straight around and brought her katana straight towards the Pro Hero's chest, but instead the threads upon her shoulders pulled her arms away, causing her to turn straight around again as Jeanist controlled them like a puppet.

"Oh honestly, I'm just curious. A Shamisen usually has three strings, my dear. I wonder why yours has two, if you wouldn't mind?" Jeanist pulled upon the threads, causing Aiko to be dragged closer to him. Quickly in an attempt to pull herself free Aiko used her teleportation quirk, but Jeanist pulled one of the seams of her clothing, distracting her.

"Your quirk has one weakness, girl. Concentration." Jeanist spoke as footsteps were heard behind Aiko, and the terrible scraping noise was heard again. "One simple act of distraction nullifies your ability to dislocate yourself from the clutches of the enemy. I guess that's to avoid a paradox, I would imagine."

"Damn it…" Aiko hissed as Kamui Woods raised his branched arms again, bringing its sharp edges to her throat as Jeanist restrained her by the shoulders again.

"Now answer us, _where_ are your friends?" Jeanist ordered, his voice harsh and demanding yet calm and leveled.

"They are _not_ my friends." Aiko snarled, struggling against their threads as Jeanist continuously pulled at her threads to keep her distracted. "And if you took into consideration that they'd be here, then you'd know where, already."

"So we do." Jeanist nodded his head and raised his voice. "Takeyama, kick them out."

Mt. Lady, who towered above the freight container Aiko had crawled out of brought her foot back and slammed it against the freight's wall, causing it to topple over and crumble.

Aiko winced at the ear-splitting crash as she snarled, clutching her weapon but Jeanist reminded her again of her helplessness.

"If not for the Ghost Girl, I would've never found you." Jeanist sneered as Mt. Lady lifted the freight car and threw open the door, leaning her head inside to find the criminals.

As soon as the door clattered to the ground suddenly Aiko remembered the portal she used to pass through the wheel lock and the fact that she hadn't closed it when she stepped out. It might've fizzled out by now but there was that possibility, if her partners were clever.

"Uhm, Hakamata, they're not here." Mt. Lady spoke sheepishly, then turning the freight upside down to shake its contents out, which caused the mattresses inside to fall out and nearly fell on top of the Pro Heroes, which caused them to dodge out of the way.

"You damn woman! Watch where you make your bed!" Kamui Woods snapped, narrowly avoiding being sandwiched by a falling mattress.

Aiko then smirked, seizing this opportunity to use her quirk and teleported out of Jeanist's grasp, then using her katana, severing her loose threads.

"I suppose you adults aren't as perfect as you all want to be." Aiko sneered and Jeanist thrust his arms forward, sending a barrage of threads her way. The girl effortlessly cut them and found that from behind Kamui Woods was once again attempting to seize her but she used her teleportation quirk to keep them at bay.

"Aim for the Shamisen, Nishiya!" Jeanist ordered but was thrown to the ground by an invisible figure, whom happened to be Soichiro.

"You again?" Aiko called as she ducked to avoid a branch at her head, causing it to shoot forward straight towards the two of them but two hands gripped it simultaneously. Aiko saw that those two hands belonged to Ichigo as she gripped the branches, crushing them within her hands as the branch was straight through her translucent chest.

"Aiko!" Ichigo grinned, shattering the wood shrapnel within her hands. Kamui Woods cried out in pain as he fell back, keeping out of range.

"That damn Ghost Girl… She crushed my wood." The man stared at his hands in disbelief.

"Soon she'll crush your heart." Mt. Lady teased, then used the freight car and threw it in the criminals' direction, planning to crush them all in oblivion.

"You idiot! That's gonna kill us all!" Kamui Woods cried out in vain but Mizu stepped straight in front of them, her face morphing into a monstrous maul of teeth and shrieked at the top of her lungs, the sound waves penetrating through the freight car, crushing it. Aiko covered her ears in vain, attempting to block the sound out but found that she couldn't, causing her to grip her forehead, this time, in pain. The surrounding freight cars around them also began to tighten, splitting and folding within themselves as Mizu amplified her voice, then the falling freight car split into tiny shrapnel raining upon them lightly as everyone covered their heads.

"Agh! My eyes! MY EYES!" Kamui Woods cried, covering his face.

"Extraordinary." Best Jeanist continued to keep his head down as he stared at Mizu, who turned to meet Osamu running straight up to her who bent down to receive a petting from her.

"Good boy, you found them. Now let's hurry." Mizu nodded to Soichiro as the chameleon darted towards them in blinding speed as Ichigo followed, but stopped to realize that Aiko wasn't following them.

"I'll get her." Ichigo piped up and floated towards her but Mizu raised a hand, stopping her. She, herself, then made her way towards the Shamisen girl who was curled into a fetal position with her palms tightly clasped to her ears, whimpering cries of helplessness. Mizu gently wrapped her arms around her and pulled her up, causing Aiko to cry out in horror and attempt to struggle away but Mizu was gentle, attempting to calm her down with the soothing sound of her voice, which lulled Aiko into a state of melancholy. Tears began falling down her eyes as Mizu shushed her gently, and then whispered two words she never thought she would ever say to her.

"Thank you."

 **~9o9~**

 **Aaaand, scene! This chapter took me a lot longer to plan and write out, I struggled especially with the beginning with the ghosts. I hope I got the definitions of the "Yurei" and "Reikon" correctly, it's interesting to note how the two terms describe the dead in Japanese folklore but mean two different types of souls entirely, according to Wikipedia. Also the names… err, I tried giving thought into them by attempting to incorporate their characteristics through their names ("Mizu Josei" literally means "Water Woman") but I totally might've ended up just sounding like a fucking weeaboo so I apologize! Anyway, I hope you are enjoying the story so far, and I guess I'll see you again in future ones!**


	4. Chapter 4: I Can Do This!

**Chapter 4: I Can Do This!**

 **I apologize for the belated update, recently life has given me absolute hell, being stuck in traffic for over 6 hours to get back home, a recent switch in classes lead me to fall behind in my studies, and essentially, the motivation to work on this story is almost becoming nonexistent. I realize by now I'm repeating a lot of tropes, and I apologize, but I'm gonna finish this thing no matter how cliché it'll get. Stay tuned! :)**

 **WARNING: DEPICTIONS OF GRAPHIC VIOLENCE AND GORE ARE PRESENT IN THIS CHAPTER!**

 **~9o9~**

"I guess the debris'll hold em' off for now, but we're all safe together, right?" Soichiro asked, leaping nimbly around as Mizu carried Aiko in her arms, Osamu obediently following behind her and watching her back as Ichigo tagged along, whom stared at Aiko worriedly.

"Is she gonna be okay?" Ichigo asked, floating in front of Mizu, whom looked up at her. However Aiko coughed before Mizu could answer as she opened her eyes, her golden yellow pupils then shrinking as soon as she saw Ichigo in front of her, leaping straight out of Mizu's arms.

"Wha- when did you-" Aiko pointed a finger accusingly at Ichigo as she regained her footing in front of the ghost but Mizu shushed her, stepping between the two girls.

"Now, now, we are not going to have any more fights after what we've all just been through. Calm down." Mizu then noticed Ichigo attempting to hide her face behind her maroon hair as she was on the verge of tears. "The _both_ of you."

"Yeah, right, after making me walk into a graveyard looking for you." Aiko crossed her arms, still not willing to drop the subject as she stared into Ichigo's pleading eyes, pleading her not to mention what happened last night. "Look, Ichigo, I know what I saw. I want to help you, whatever it is. Just tell me- no, _us_ , what's going on."

"I-I can't… I mean- I don't know what you're talking about." Ichigo dodged the question as she attempted to float away but Aiko grabbed her hand, growing surprised, as it was solid.

"What _are_ you two talking about?" Mizu raised an eyebrow, skeptical as she, Osamu, and Soichiro began to grow curious, crowding around the two girls.

"Damn it…" Ichigo snapped, curling her hands into fists as she threw her hand away from Aiko's grip. "Why does everyone want to know _everything_?! Can't a girl just keep her own secrets for once?! Why does it always have to be _everyone's_ business?!"

"A girl's secret shouldn't _be_ a secret if it means there's a literal living corpse of you haunting the streets of Musutafu City freaking everyone out." Aiko snapped, pointing an accusing finger at her.

"There's a _what_?!" Soichiro gasped, turning to Osamu in fear then back at Aiko. "W-Who the hell has been messin' with the dead again?! E-Everyone knows it's not right to mess with the dead!"

"Maybe we among the living _hadn't_ messed with the dead." Osamu then spoke, pointing at Ichigo. "Perhaps the _dead_ have been messing with _themselves_."

Ichigo snarled and attempted to give the dog a reprimand of why what he said wasn't the case but Mizu stepped in front of him, meeting her gaze.

"It seems even Ghost Girl's got her own set of problems next to Aiko." Mizu challenged. "If you really _are_ a ghost and your unrested body is running along the streets of Musutafu City, then _that's_ pretty messed up, _especially_ hearing from _you_ considering I expected _you_ to be the one I'd like the most."

"I thought you liked me the most." Osamu pouted, staring up at Mizu.

"Then what we gotta do to put ya back to sleep, then?" Soichiro piped up, narrowing his eyes at Ichigo. "Cuz' we can't have Miss Corpse Girl freaking the shit outta all the city."

"I-I don't want to talk about it!" Ichigo cried, floating away quickly from the group as Aiko attempted to grab her hand again but this time, Ichigo made sure it was hollow as it slipped from her grasp.

"Ichigo!" Aiko cried, attempting to stop her but the Ghost Girl was gone from her sight.

"Welp, guess we'll go leave the Quirk-loving city into a Haunt fest." Soichiro shrugged and began walking over to a nearby corner to start up his Nintendo DS again but Osamu grabbed his tail as Mizu began to think, placing a hand to her chin.

"They say that 'Yurei' are unrested souls, traumatized by the living by being put to death in a violent way as they lead to an afterlife of unrest." Mizu rubbed her chin thoughtfully, turning to Aiko. "You've been to the graveyard, right? By any chance, do you know which tombstone belonged to her?"

Aiko grew pale. "I, uh, was too scared to go any further inside."

"HAH! 'Scared', huh?! HAHAHAHAHAAA!" Soichiro burst out laughing, managing to shake Osamu's grip on his tail off and headed over to a closed-lidded garbage bin to sit on top of as he started up his DS.

"Well then, we have to put her back in her place regardless. It's the only way to prevent havoc from rising among us. Because no one likes that." Mizu then pointed a finger forward. "So we have to find Ichigo."

" _We_? No, _I_ have to! I don't need you to keep doing things for me!" Aiko cried but Mizu stepped forward and slapped her. Aiko's eyes grew wide as even Soichiro looked up from his DS in surprise.

"Mizu!" Osamu cried as Aiko stepped back, rubbing her sore cheek. "Mizu, I think you've gone too far!"

"'Too far'?! What do you _mean_ too far?! Every word out of that child's mouth that involves her getting into trouble on her own hurts me! And imagine all this time I've had to put up with all of that… knowing how it feels in the past with someone of her age…" Tears began falling down Mizu's eyes but she swallowed, refusing to let them fall. "I want to _protect_ you, Aiko. If you keep wanting to do things on your own, you'll get hurt!"

" _What_ 'someone of my age' of the past?! And you've never once cared for me to the point where I'm considered your child! _You_ left me behind having to fight off those Pro Heroes so _you_ could escape. Not _once_ did you help me!" Aiko snapped.

"Then _that_ was your mistake! That was _your_ choice, wasn't it, to give us a distraction so we could get away? Your actions contradicts your words, Aiko." Mizu took a breath, attempting to soothe her voice to avoid any further unnecessary argument. "Look, we can talk about this later. For now, we have to find Ichigo. Let's move."

Mizu beckoned Osamu over and he followed her as Soichiro swiftly jumped behind, although he stopped as he saw Aiko kick a nearby rock, causing it to fall into a drainage opening as rain up upon the sky began to pour, the clouds beginning to cover the bright sun that warmed the winter morning, the chameleon deciding instead to jump up to talk to her.

"Look, kid, I get you, Mizu ain't all honest and perfect in tellin' you how she feels, but trust me, she's trying." Soichiro stared at Aiko's eyes, which had begun to grow dark in demotivation. "Let me tell you, I agree with you, everything you've observed about her, you've got a point. But she's acting like your mother because she thinks you need one. She was a mother herself, to a child of your age, you know. You could imagine how that went from the way she acts around you."

Aiko looked up at Mizu as she continued forward with Osamu, then stopped as she noticed the Shamisen Girl and Soichiro weren't following along.

"What… did happen to that child?" Aiko asked as Soichiro began running to catch up but stopped in his tracks as she finished her question, wincing.

"I, uh, well, Mizu's better at telling the story than I ever could, so ask her." Soichiro then resumed running, catching up with Mizu and Osamu. Aiko stared at the Siren woman, her long flowing light blue locks damp because of the rain but gently flowing through the winter breeze. There were a lot of things Aiko didn't know about the woman other than the fact that she was the leader of their little group. Aiko then realized, she hadn't been too fair through her judgment of her, but there was something off about her that the Shamisen girl absolutely despised- the _one_ of _two_ factors that permanently devastated her life and caused her to become a homeless criminal in the first place.

Her _mother_.

* * *

Ichigo pulled out a book from a manga-filled shelf, flipping through its contents to stare at its art. The characters' eyes were blown into extreme proportions and their hair glamorized and shiny, but it was illustrations like these that soothed her nerves.

The library of Musutafu City was filled, as always. Hero-loving children always crowd themselves in the manga section, waiting eagerly for the next issue of "All Might's Adventures", as well as the other heroes' stories. One boy in particular with curly green and black hair dressed in an All Might costume jumped happily up and down as his mother reached up for the newest All Might manga edition on the top shelf. The boy gripped it eagerly and started dancing around excitedly, to the disdain of the librarian, whom was a cranky old wrinkling elephant humanoid with big large flapped ears that twitched whenever she heard something. She brought her hands to her dry lips and shushed the family, saliva spewing straight out.

Ichigo chuckled and closed the book, floating up on the top shelf to put it back. Perhaps she should go back and tell Aiko and the others about why she didn't want to go back to the land of the dead, an obligation she personally felt she was responsible for. But no matter how many ways she thought of doing it, she never could find the confidence to bring herself out of the library. The library was, to her, an escape and a quiet place to jump into the imagination of others. She liked reading because it was the characters' struggles that gave her motivation to fight her own struggles in life.

But this time, she wasn't sure if she was strong enough anymore to face them.

"Heehee, you were right, Hakamata, she was here." A voice giggled in the far corner of the shelf opposite of Ichigo as the Ghost Girl floated down to grab another issue of a different manga series.

"Stop standing on my shoulders, you damn woman! And you need to work out; you've gotten heavier the last time I carried you!" Kamui Woods hissed, struggling to keep Mt. Lady's thighs on top of his shoulders as Best Jeanist kept him in place underneath.

"But I can't see if I don't stand on them! And besides, you lift weights all the time! You should be able to handle me!" Mt. Lady continued to bring her feet onto Kamui Woods' shoulders, to the disdain of the man underneath.

"You know, I am so sick of your bullshit, to the point where I'm gonna absolutely lose it every time I work with you! If we haven't met in high school, my life would've been so much better now!" Kamui Woods shook his head as Best Jeanist rolled his eyes, growing tired of the duo's bickering.

"Aww, but you liked me then, remember? You said you loved my hair and always wanted to touch it. You told me that I was _the mountain of your heart_." Mt. Lady teased.

"I did not!" Kamui Woods snapped, shaking in rage. "You made that up, you damn woman! I never had a crush on you and you know it!"

"Did so!"

"Did not!"

"Did so!"

"Did no-aaaauuugh!" Kamui Woods shrieked as he lost his grip on Mt. Lady's legs as she found herself tumbling to the library floor, the rest following alongside her. Best Jeanist groaned as he shook his head, fixing his denim neck warmer.

"QUIET, YOU ADULTS IN THE CORNER! YOU WERE LOUDER THAN THAT GREEN-HAIRED KID!" The Elephant woman blew her trunk, her ears twitching again as she threatened their corner with her tusks jutted out. However she didn't realize that the _actual_ green-haired kid was standing straight in front of her, waiting to check out his new All Might book with his mother until she was too late, realizing her mistake. "Oh, uh, excuse me, little one."

But the green-haired kid was oblivious to whom she was referring to as he continued to have a precious big smile on his face as his mother checked out his "All Might's Adventures" book for him.

"Heehee, you screamed the Wilhelm scream." Mt. Lady teased Kamui Woods as he pulled himself up with considerable effort, finding that the woman sitting straight on top of him.

"Get off of me, you damn woman." Kamui Woods growled as the woman giggled.

"Damn it, we've lost her." Best Jeanist peeked through a set of books, curling his free hand into a fist. "If it wasn't for you two's constant bickering, we would've captured her by now."

"Blame it on Nishiya." Mt. Lady elbowed the man teasingly.

"It wasn't my fault!" He snarled. "And besides, Hakamata, I didn't know you swore."

"Swear? I would never have spoken such vulgar language." Best Jeanist shook his head, fixing the books back into place.

"Oh you did, you said 'damn it'."

"I did not!" Best Jeanist snapped.

"Did so!"

"Did not!"

"Did so!"

"Who's bickering now?" Mt. Lady burst out laughing, only to be shushed by the librarian again, who threatened to blow a torrent of spit at them.

Meanwhile, Ichigo had heard the commotion and recognized the voices almost immediately as soon as they were spoken and managed to hide out of sight.

 _That was close_ , she thought to herself. Who knew that the Pro Heroes were already on her tail at this very moment?

However, the Pro Heroes weren't the only ones as Ichigo heard other recognizable voices, this time, though, not belonging to heroes.

"You sure it was a good idea following the Pro Heroes into the library?" Soichiro narrowed his eyes in suspicion as the four criminals hid behind the opposite shelf of Ichigo the Pro Heroes were at.

"If they're here, then that means Ichigo is too. We'll find her." Mizu grinned, bringing her hand to the shelf to peek through the books to find Ichigo on the other side. Meanwhile Soichiro had grabbed a magazine that had the label R-18 and showed its contents to Osamu, who cringed in disgust, which caused the chameleon to burst out laughing.

"Stop being immature, _Rojo_." Aiko snapped, rolling her eyes as she snatched the book out of Soichiro's hands.

"' _Rojo_ '?! Is that literally what you called me?! The word 'red' in Spanish?!" Soichiro snapped.

"Yeah, got a problem with that?" Aiko sneered.

"Yeah, plus you takin' that magazine real fast from my hands." Soichiro smirked mischievously. "In fact, I think you took it so fast because _you_ wanted to look at it."

"Wha- _me_?! I'm not interested in shit like that!" Aiko blushed, shoving the magazine quickly back on a nearby shelf without caring if it belonged.

"Oh I think you _are_ , how else would you take it so fast? I bet it's because you're in love with Ichigo, aren't you? You two are gonna do it and fetishize it like the girls in the magazine, huh? Huh?"

"You're ridiculous!" Aiko snapped, shaking her head frantically. "I'm _not_ in love with Ichigo!"

"Oh so you're _denying_ it, huh? That only makes you even _more_ suspicious!" Soichiro teased, nudging Osamu. "I think she _likes_ Ichigo."

"I do _not_!" Aiko cried, blushing uncontrollably. "I barely even know her that well to begin with!"

Soichiro burst out laughing, which caused Osamu to elbow him back.

"Honestly, you're so immature. Guess it serves you right being called _Rojo_ for the day." Osamu sneered, causing Soichiro to roll his eyes but continued laughing.

"I see her." Mizu immediately ran over to the rest of the group and pointed toward the end of the shelf. "Let's hurry, she's trying to escape the library."

" _Lover girl_." Soichiro teased at Aiko, whom had the uncontrollable urge to teleport him into a pit full of crocodiles.

Ichigo was already on the move as soon as she realized her friends were inside, weaving quickly through the endless shelves of the library, attempting to confuse her followers. However, she managed to be caught by Aiko, who teleported herself to her right, causing Ichigo to jump back in horror.

"Ichigo, we're here to help you!" Aiko cried but Ichigo floated through a nearby bookshelf, causing Aiko to give chase.

"Damn it, why are you running away again?!" Aiko snapped, her friends already full speed ahead as Soichiro used his invisibility quirk to jump quickly from shelf to shelf without detection.

"Guess who's got you, _special girl_." Soichiro sneered as he nimbly jumped in front of Ichigo, blocking her path. Quickly Ichigo began floating in the opposite direction but Aiko, Mizu, and Osamu were already on the other side, the two sides beginning to close in on her.

"You don't have to run away anymore, Ichigo. Tell us what's bothering you." Osamu spoke gently as he followed his friends forward.

"I…" Ichigo began but Soichiro blocked her path, spinning around her to create mirages of his image that surrounded her.

"You know, runnin' away from your problems ain't gonna help us or you. You better start takin' responsibility, girl. Because if you don't," Soichiro met her gaze, his black pupils meeting her own. "We'll all suffer your dead zombie doppelgänger's wrath and it'll be _your_ fault."

Suddenly, the lights inside of the library began to dim, causing Ichigo to grow tense. She knew exactly what was coming, or more specifically, _who_ was coming. Quickly she dashed through the shelf she was cornered in, escaping her friends.

"What the- where did she go?!" Soichiro cried, panting out of breath as he had ran in circles around her for the past few minutes.

"I don't like this…" Mizu raised her head as suddenly loud banging noises were heard around the library, shutting all the doors closed.

Outside the library, the green-haired boy and his mother looked back at the library, confused.

"What's going on, Mama?" The boy asked curiously.

"I'm sure it's nothing, Izuku. Let's hurry home." Inko Midoriya pushed her son along, although she certainly knew something wasn't right… or at least, normal.

The walls began to creak ominously, causing Soichiro to shudder in fear.

"Don't tell me there's m-more g-ghosts…" Soichiro trembled close to Osamu for protection.

"Get off of me, you nervous reptile. I'm sure it's just the walls straining because of the cold weather." Osamu attempted to comfort him but he knew that wasn't the reason at all. Something wasn't right.

"All right, now who turned off the lights?!" The Elephant librarian snapped, blowing her trunk in anger as she stomped straight up, her huge form taking up the majority of the library as she narrowed her eyes in suspicion as low, moaning noises were heard ominously through the commotion.

"Ichigo?" Aiko recognized that voice, growing tense as she gripped her katana pulled from her Shamisen, growing fearful of her surroundings.

"WHOEVER'S SCREAMING, SHUT THE HELL UP! THIS IS A LIBRARY, DAMN YOU! LEARN SOME RESPECT!" The elephant lady snapped as she stepped forward but as soon as she did so, a corpse of a petite young girl shrieked, jumping straight in front of her as it opened its mouth, black residue dripping out of her pupiless eyes and mouth as her skin began peeling, flaking along the floor. The elephant shrieked at the top of her lungs, her voice rumbling throughout the entire library.

Immediately everyone inside began to panic, creating widespread hysteria throughout.

"What the _hell_ is that?! How the hell did she get in here?! But I'm getting out of here before I find out!" A voice cried, belonging to a black-haired girl in a black trench coat made a mad dash for the exit but the corpse girl immediately turned her gaze towards the foolish girl as she suddenly jumped on all fours and crawled straight towards her in blinding speed, snagging the girl's coat as she tumbled to the floor.

"Agh! What the hell, let me go, you damn zombie! Don't eat me!" The girl cried, but the corpse snarled, revealing a frightening maul of fangs that snapped at her flesh as she was dangerously dragged closer into it.

"Oh God… Oh God, oh God, oh God, oh God, oh God…" An ear-piercing shriek was heard straight afterwards as blood began spraying straight out of the zombie monster's mouth, the girl gone.

"Well, I told her not to scream and shout." Another voice spoke, this time belonging to a girl whom sat next to the other girl who got eaten alive in a mullet haircut resembling Hayden Christensen from Star Wars in an Iron Man jacket sighed, then stood up and began silently but briskly heading for the door.

"D-did that zombie monster e-eat her?!" Mt. Lady pointed at the monster while shaking uncontrollably in fear.

"I wanna go home…" Kamui Woods hugged himself into a fetal position in absolute fear as more people inside of the library began to scream their heads off as the zombie monster continued devouring more and more people she could get her hands upon. She was lightning fast, which, as Best Jeanist observed, believed she carried the quirk of super speed like the Flash. The girl was light on her feet and nimble, which made her as a formidable opponent.

"We need to take her out before she eats anymore people." Best Jeanist spoke, bringing threads out of his clothes.

"Yeah, no shit! How the _hell_ are we gonna deal with a flesh-eating cannibal like her who's lightning quick on her toes eating people left and right like there's no tomorrow?!" Kamui Woods cried out in despair, sobbing uncontrollably.

"Are you kidding me?!" Best Jeanist immediately jumped to his side and pulled his head back up and brought a fist straight against his helmet. "Is _this_ how you're supposed to act as a Pro Hero?! Cowardly and fearful of your own life?! What the hell is wrong with you?! Are you just going to sit there, drowning in your tears while everyone around you's dying left and right?! You're a _hero_ , damn you! _We're_ heroes! We put the people's lives ahead of our own!"

He then stood up, turning to Mt. Lady. "Come on, Takeyama, we must hurry before more lives are lost. I'll serve as a distraction for the zombie monster while you attempt to trap it using whatever debris you can put your hands on."

"Gotcha." Mt. Lady grinned, curling her hands into fists as she quickly began growing big into scale, but not so big to the point where she could burst through the roof, as she could control how big she wanted to grow.

Kamui Woods stared at his friends working together in union with admiration, moved by Best Jeanist's fearlessness to face the monster head-on in combat as the girl swiped her claws at the denim-dressed hero, snarling at him with her horrific fangs. This motivated Kamui Woods to stand back up, taking his ground. So what if the zombie girl was horrifyingly grotesque and dead on the outside, if she laid a finger on Hakamata, she'll be _destroyed_.

The zombie girl then managed to snag threads from Best Jeanist's clothing as she pulled at them, causing him to fall to the ground. The zombie girl then lassoed him into submission, pulling him close and successfully trapping him underneath her grasp as she stood on top of him, planting her foot on top of his chest and began crushing his beating heart. Best Jeanist gasped for air as he attempted to open his neck warmer but was growing pale and blue by the minute.

Quickly Kamui Woods dashed to his rescue, bringing his branches forward and immobilized the girl within his grasp, pulling her straight off of him as the zombie shrieked, gnawing at his grasp with her gnarled teeth. The man cried in pain but tried to the best of his efforts to buy his friend some time as Best Jeanist rose to his feet, clutching his chest and gasped in pain.

"Open that neck warmer, you need air." Kamui Woods suggested to him, keeping an eye on the girl, whom was already halfway through gnawing her way out of his grasp.

"I will do no such thing. And besides, my respiratory system has already recovered. There's no need to worry for me." But Best Jeanist was only attempting to hide his weakened form as the zombie girl had managed to gnaw her way out of Kamui Wood's grasp already and lunged straight for the denim-dressed hero.

"The Pro Heroes are taking her out!" Soichiro cried, watching the scene from afar as he planted his feet upon the shelf and peeked through an open space of books.

"You know it's not safe for you to stand on the shelf like that." Osamu warned him, but Soichiro ignored him, too invested in the scene before him.

"We have to help them!" Aiko cried, stepping forward but Mizu grabbed her shoulder, stopping her.

"What are you, insane?! Since when were you ever on the Pro Heroes' side?! And besides, they can handle that! We have to get out of here while there's still time!" Mizu cried briskly, pulling her back.

"But they can't beat her without Ichigo! We need Ichigo to get her corpse to calm down!"

"What makes you _think_ that's _her_ corpse out there?! Are you out of your mind?!"

"Maybe to you, I am! But I know calming that beast will help Ichigo! I'm not doing this for myself, I'm doing this for her!" Aiko stared at Mizu straight in the eyes, her golden irises glowing with determination.

"I can do this!" She spoke again, which caused Mizu's eyes to grow wide, remembering her own child, her daughter who said those very words to her in the past.

" _I need to save her! I'm the only one who can! Please, Mom, let me go! I can do this!_ "

" _You're right_ …" She whispered silently as she watched Aiko head towards the fight, towards her possible death. " _I know you can_ …"

As Aiko ran towards the fight, she felt that she wasn't alone. In fact, she felt as though two others were running with her… but they weren't Soichiro and Osamu as she expected.

Rather, she noticed two bluish shapes, traveling along the floor almost as though they were weightless. One of them had blue hair and was dressed in a Samurai Costume. He sported a rectangular shield and held it forward at the ready.

However the _other_ Samurai caught her eye, whom had long flowing purple hair and carried a katana, the same katana Aiko carried in her hands as she recognized his purple hair- the same exact purple hair that resembled one of the two strings of her Shamisen.

Her eyes grew wide as the Samurai Ghost met her gaze, his face gentle and sweet but at the same time determined and courageous. His eyes then widened in recognition upon her face and smiled, proud.

"F-Father?!" Aiko cried in recognition.

 **~9o9~**

 **Aaaaaaand, cliché plot twist! Well, not really, but I had a feeling that most of you saw that coming. But anyway, I've been going through several drafts for this chapter, and it was really hard to figure out what to do with the scene with the library … I didn't think the Ichigo flesh-lookalike would make an appearance again but eh, plans changed. In fact, I found my renewed interest in the story by making the lookalike become a flesh-eating monster and killing everyone on screen. Yeah, that scene motivated me to write more. Wow, I need a therapist. Anyway, stay tuned for more; once again I apologize for the belated update. I see that my story's gaining some followers and favorites, which is something I'm flattered by! I thought no one would ever read a story like this but I guess I'm wrong, aren't I? Thank you to everyone following along and I hope to update soon on a Sunday!**


	5. Chapter 5: Give Into Your Anger

**Chapter 5: Give Into Your Anger**

 **AN: Hands down, this is the "chapter" I'm most proud of for this story so far. Too bad I had to split my ideas for it into two chapters, but eh, this one's fiiiiine. If it weren't, then why would I publish it?**

 **WARNING: GORE AND EXTREME DEPICTION OF VIOLENECE COMING UP! Forgot to make this warning before, man I always forget the most important things at the last minute.**

 **~9o9~**

"F-Father?!" Aiko cried in recognition as she met the gaze of her father. Sword in hand, her father then raised it, bringing it towards her.

Then he swung for her head.

Aiko screamed in horror as she ducked to avoid being beheaded as she tumbled to the floor, rolling forward to keep herself moving.

"W-What the hell?!" Did her father seriously tried to kill her?! If so, why, what was he to gain from his dead daughter?!

"You!" A voice cried, belonging to Kamui Woods as he attempted but failed to rescue Best Jeanist from the black oozing zombie, whom managed to grab the denim-dressed hero again and shredded a large chunk of his clothing, causing his threaded reflexes to slow as he fell to the ground, preoccupying Kamui Woods as he attempted to protect his comrade. "Why the hell are you here, Criminal?!"

"I'm not a criminal!" Aiko snapped, only to be preoccupied again as her father's ghost brought his sword forward, causing her to raise her sword behind her back, holding it in a backwards grip as her enemy's sword clashed against her own.

Straining against her enemy's strength, Aiko concentrated her power upon dislocating herself from the scene and teleported straight out of her compromised position. She landed on top of a bookshelf, out of breath as her father looked around and saw her, floating threateningly towards her as he nodded to the other ghost, whom split up and began heading for the zombie.

"Father, what the hell?!" Aiko cried as her father swung his sword again as she jumped to another shelf, teleporting herself in case she slipped as she clashed swords against him. "The hell you are to gain from killin' me?!"

"You disrupted the rest of the dead. It is only by the law of Mother Nature that I must punish you." Her father ominously answered as he managed to slice open Aiko's purple and teal flower hair tie, causing the tied hair on the back of her head to fall. Aiko snarled in anger and swiped his sword away, managing to snag a slit mark against her father's face, growing surprised as she could strike him.

"But it wasn't _me_ who disrupted the dead, it was Ichigo! And besides, even if it was her, I won't let you lay a finger on her until I reunite her with her body! That's what you and your ghost friend would want, right?" Aiko then opened up a large portal, sucking up any nearby books upwards and then made another portal behind her father, sending those books forward towards him. Her father's eyes grew wide as he floated straight up to avoid being hit, but Aiko simply teleported herself out of the way and from a safe distance, teleported the thrown books again towards her foe.

Using his sword, her father then sliced the books open, ripping its pages apart as the papyrus split apart, its shreds floating to the carpeted floor of the library as it rained upon the panicked civilians' heads.

"In my opinion, I think _you_ and your ghost friend are disrupting the rules of the Dead." Aiko sneered, raising her sword as her father headed towards her, sword in hand. "Who in what book of law thought it was a good idea to show their ghostly selves to the close-minded reality of the living?"

The Hikari's clashed swords again, although her father had taken his daughter's words into consideration. She was right, in a way.

But it wasn't his choice to disrupt the living. It was Rei's.

Her father managed to knock the sword out of Aiko's hands and knocked her to the ground as her weapon clattered to the floor, along with several books that piled on top of it. Left weaponless, Aiko crawled backwards, attempting to make her father reconsider his choice.

"Please, Father, d-don't kill me. If I had to die, I need to save someone I care for first. That's all I ask." Aiko tried desperately to reason with him, her reasons now shifting into a more personal route instead of given logic. Her father inched towards her, pointing the tip of his blade at her neck.

"And what makes you think you are worthy to save Ichigo from her inevitable fate?" Her father demanded, gripping his blade tightly. "If you've not the resolve to accomplish what you wish to live for, then what's the point of me sparing your life to do so?"

Aiko chose her words carefully, if she slipped once, she'll go to hell. Closing her eyes, Aiko chose them and then opened those eyes, saying them.

"Ichigo's my best friend, if she's got a problem, then I'll be by her side to help her. That's what friends are for."

Her father's grip upon his blade began to shake, growing conflicted once again. So Aiko _did_ have a purpose for what she wanted to accomplish, and coincidently, aligned with his own goal of returning Ichigo back to the dead. She could serve as his ally, if what Aiko said was true.

He lowered the blade. Aiko sighed in relief as she pulled herself to her feet, looking over the shelf the two of them were standing on as she saw her katana at the floor, crushed by a pile of books but still intact. Quickly, she attempted to jump down to reach it but her father stopped her, bringing a hand to her chest.

"If your resolve to help her is that strong, then there's no need to fight for it." He turned to meet his daughter's gaze. "Put down your weapon and find Ichigo. My Samurai ally and I will help the Pro Heroes immobilize the monster." He then smiled, stroking her chin and then messed with her hair, grinning, proud. "My daughter has grown into a fine woman, indeed. Mother would be proud."

And with that, he charged into battle, his sword in hand as he confronted the zombie monster, whom met his challenge head-on as he clashed against her sharp claws.

Aiko raised her head up and then created a portal, attempting to imagine where Ichigo went, bringing all the possible locations in her head.

 _Find Ichigo_. That was the order her father had entrusted her with. She couldn't afford to fail, if succeeding meant keeping his trust.

She saw a ghostly figure darting her way towards the exit, frantically charging through every panicked civilian's body, as that elevated their desperation as they found that all of the doors were bombarded and there were no tangible method of getting out, as the windows were heat-resistant thick to accommodate heat-related quirked individuals and the doors sealed with debris from the commotion of the crowd's hysteria.

Following that route of hysteria, Aiko created that portal and teleported herself straight into the middle of it.

"Ichigo!" Aiko raised her arms upwards, standing straight in front of Ichigo. " _You're comin' with me_!"

"Aiko, get the hell out of my way!" Ichigo snarled, her fingers uncurling and shaking furiously. "I've told you, I don't want to talk about it! Another time, perhaps, but not now!"

"Now may be the _only_ time!" Aiko snapped. "And how dense are you?! Don't you see," Aiko waved her hands around, emphasizing the people's presence as they cowered in fear upon Ichigo's presence. "You're not the only one who's scared here! All of us are trapped in here until we destroy that creature! And to do that, we need your help! I'm tellin' you now, we need to reunite you with your body! It's the only way!"

"But how?! What makes you think that's even possible, if my real body is a killing machine?! How will I have control over it if it takes over?!" Ichigo demanded.

"The hell I know! But we can't assume now if we haven't tried!" Aiko met her gaze, unchanging. Ichigo stepped back, moved by Aiko's determination.

But that risk feared her. Even if Aiko does succeed, if Ichigo fails, then whose victory will it be?

"HEADS UP!" A rumbling voice spoke, belonging to Mt. Lady as her giant form stomped forward, watching her step as she weaved through the crowd around her. She then reached forward and grabbed the debris that blocked the entrance of the library and threw it out, pulling it apart as the doors burst free, causing everyone to stampeded forward straight out.

"We're saved! Thank you, Mt. Lady!" The voices cheered, praising the Pro Heroine for her efforts.

"Aw, shucks, it was nothing." Mt. Lady grinned bashfully, winking at them. She then turned to Ichigo and Aiko and met their gaze knowingly.

"So, what's this I hear about reuniting Ghost Girl with her body?"

* * *

Kamui Woods raised his branches again, stabbing into the claws of the zombie monster, whom only had to dig her teeth straight into them to crush them. Moving in blinding speed, the zombie charged straight for him and jabbed straight against his helmet, missing his head by a hair as she struck the empty space above his head.

"What the hell are you…" He cried, shaking his head in disbelief as the zombie yanked her claw straight out and began aiming for the opening of his face, ready to claw his eyes out but Kamui Woods raised his arms again, protecting himself temporarily before she slashed his defenses open again. "How are you this invincible…"

"In a way, she doesn't have many weaknesses…" Best Jeanist crawled forward by pulling himself with his hands, his body severely beaten with slash marks violently gashed deep into his bare stomach as the entire lower half of his shirt had been ripped open along with the lower half of his sleeves, leaving him barely enough at the top to use as tangible threads. "But every quirked individual's got one regardless, we just need to figure it out-"

Suddenly, two ghostly figures flew through the air in blinding speed, bringing their swords forward and slashed them against both the zombie's shoulders, causing her sharp claws to slacken, immobilizing her temporarily as she shrieked in horrifying agony.

"We've got her now, Arata!" The blue-haired ghost grinned, then began charging forward for another round. "Just the arms, you said?"

"Aye, Kaito, just the arms." Arata Hikari charged forward, grinning with determination as he and his comrade looped for another round. However the zombie immediately understood their strategy and ducked, causing them to miss and grabbed both of their legs as they flew past, then leaned back and then thrust her entire body forward, slamming them to the ground and stunning them in the process.

"Agh! Arata, aim for the legs!" Kaito cried out in pain as Arata then brought his sword forward and slashed at the zombie girl's knees, causing her to shriek again but didn't release them. Snarling, she gripped the ghosts' legs and began crushing them mercilessly, appearing even more distressed upon their presence than the Pro Heroes disrupting her from before.

Growing frustrated, Arata aimed for the legs again but found that the zombie's wounds only aggravated her more as she moved her grip from their legs up to their necks, lifting them off the ground and crushing them into oblivion. Pain shot from his neck all the way down to his chest as his compacted windpipe made him gasp desperately for air.

"Are those… ghosts?!" Kamui Woods pointed at them shakily, growing even more disturbed upon the forces he and his friends were up against. "D-Don't tell me there are more of them here…"

" **Why are** _ **you**_ **here?!** " The zombie girl spoke, her voice cruel and unforgiving as it ripped through the eardrums of everyone who heard her voice, causing everyone to cover their ears in agony. " **You were sent by** _ **Rei**_ **, weren't you?! You were sent by that dying, disgusting** _ **brainless corpse**_ **to kill me and punish Ichigo for her departure,** _ **weren't you**_ **?!** " When the warriors didn't respond, the zombie snarled and threw them towards the other side of the building, releasing their windpipes in order for them to speak. " **WEREN'T YOU?!** "

"They're not here to punish you!" A voice cried, almost in the same tone as the zombie girl's although was in a more gentle and natural tone. A large hand had brought two girls down to the ground, belonging to Mt. Lady, as Ichigo stepped forward along with Aiko. She pointed at her living corpse as black ooze dripped from her eyes and mouth, snarling in jealousy over her ghost's livelier form. " _We're_ here to put you back in your place!"

" _ **Ichigo Rei**_." The corpse snarled, pointing a finger at her, knowing to keep her distance. " **So you confront your rage again, this time, choosing to** _ **embrace**_ **it. How pitifully fitting, considering you allowed it to grow and mature into its own being rather than controlling it from the beginning. But you can't stop me now, for** _ **I**_ **have become my own existence entirely!** " She raised her arms up in the air, grinning sadistically. " **I've no need for my soul anymore! I am my** _ **own**_ **person now! I am** _ **fueled**_ **by your rage, your disdain for humanity, and I will wipe it from the face of this Earth! Isn't this what you wanted, after all, had you left me to live on my own this entire time?!** "

"You're wrong." Ichigo shook her head, stepping dangerously forward towards her living corpse. "I chose to let you live on your own because I was afraid of confronting you." She raised a hand, reaching for her demonic self. "I tried to leave my mistakes behind, which meant leaving you behind. I shouldn't have done that, I shouldn't have left you alone."

The corpse's eyes grew wide as she stepped back, realizing the space between them was beginning to grow smaller and smaller. Quickly she attempted to dash away, attempting using her superspeed to escape but Kamui Woods and Best Jeanist, with whatever strength he had left, were already two steps ahead of her.

"Don't let her escape!" Best Jeanist ordered, using the last of his threads to wind themselves around Ichigo's corpse, distracting her as Kamui Woods wrapped his branches around her forcefully, tightening his grip this time for them to last longer.

"I'm going to confront my past mistakes and resolve them once and for all, which means I'm going to take you back."

The zombie girl snarled, struggling against the Pro Heroes' grips but before she could even attempt to escape, Aiko used her teleporting quirk to teleport Ichigo towards her immediately, which allowed Ichigo to seize the zombie girl's chest. The zombie's eyes grew wide in horror, attempting to struggle away from the ghost's grip but her touch was already taking effect, causing smoked essence to rise from her now burning chest as Ichigo began entering her body.

" _I'm sorry. For leaving you behind._ "

The zombie shrieked in agony, the pain upon Ichigo's presence ripping through her entire body as her skin peeled apart, allowing new healthy skin to take its place as Ichigo enveloped her presence, returning to her body where she once came. Her entire body began to glow, her soul returning to her rightful place where she belonged so she could live again- and confront her mistakes.

The bright glowing light blinded everyone's presence around her as it created a large shockwave that shook the entire terrain of Mother's Earth, waking up the city through a shallow earthquake, as well as the dead sleeping among the soil of the graveyard.

Hinata Rei was the first to notice the shift of Mother's Earth as he rose from his grave, watching the library in the distance where he knew his daughter was.

The only way he'll ever accept her presence among the dead again, however, is whether or not she could control her rage for revenge.

After the earthquake, all was quiet. Ichigo Rei was still, her newfound possessed body eerily stone cold still. This began to worry not only the ghosts who were tasked in taking her back to the dead, but Aiko as well as she remembered the possibility that Ichigo had brought up to her when she asked for her assistance.

" _What makes you think that's even possible, if my real body is a killing machine?! How will I have control over it if it takes over?!"_

 _If Ichigo fails, then whose victory will it be?_

"Aiko!" A voice cried, belonging to Mizu and her comrades as they all ran towards her, rushing to her aid. Mizu then embraced Aiko briskly, holding her in a motherly grasp. "Aiko… Aiko, I thought I lost you… I'm so glad you're alright."

"D-Don't say that, yet…" Aiko blushed upon Mizu's motherly embrace and then stared at Ichigo's suspended form, which had began floating from the ground on its own, her eyes closed and her body restfully on its back. "Something… doesn't seem right."

"Damn right it doesn't." Soichiro noticed the floating body eerily off the ground as he crossed his arms, skeptical. "Why would she be floatin' up like that and not movin'?"

Suddenly bones cracked. Ichigo's spine burst open, revealing her exposed vertebrae as dried blood began seeping out of her wound, causing her to shriek in agony. Aiko stepped back, unnerved.

"What the hell…" Aiko gasped as Ichigo's eyes burst open and instead of the black ooze from before, now becoming fresh scarlet blood dripping down her eyes and mouth as thousands of slit marks horizontally on top of each other opened upon her arms, causing even more blood to ooze straight down as her claws began growing unnaturally long, shaking uncontrollably. She opened her oozing mouth, revealing the horrifying maul of teeth her zombie form had before, snarling in rage.

She only had one goal in mind after achieving her existence in the cruel world of the living-

Her desire to eradicate the dead, and one man in particular- _Hinata Rei_.

 **~9o9~**

 **Man, I had a lot of ideas for this chapter but I needed to split it into two because of cinematic tension. Hey, as an entertainer, I gotta keep y'all on your toes. This story's got me wingin' it most of the time cuz I honestly have no idea where it's gonna go most of the time.** **Guess y'all will be seein' the bigger plans I've had for this chapter on the next chapter! See you then! Noir signin' off.**


	6. Chapter 6: Hope

**Chapter 6: Hope**

 **WARNING: Very heavy depictions of violence, gore, and bones cracking in this chapter, as well as angst. A lot of angst. You've been warned!**

" _Father… I'm beautiful… aren't I?"_

 _Ichigo stared at herself in the mirror, bringing a hand to her slowly growing transparent face, realizing she could now see behind her magenta room wall, through it._

" _Ichigo…" Her mother spoke gently, attempting to embrace Ichigo, to hide her from the disappointment that she knew, was inevitable._

 _But Ichigo knew of the inevitable. Snarling, Ichigo turned straight around to face her mother, her face contorted in a fit of rage._

" _I_ _ **am**_ _beautiful, right?! There isn't anything wrong with me,_ _ **right**_ _?!" Ichigo snapped, grabbing her mother's kimono collar and raised her off the ground, her ghostly form levitating off the ground._

" _Ichigo…"_

" _ANSWER ME, DAMN IT! TELL ME I'M BEAUTIFUL!"_

" _You are… beautiful."_

But Father Rei thought otherwise. Money spent on plastic surgery- to perfect Ichigo's growing transparent skin, wasted. Effort taken to hide her natural flaws by dressing her in the most extravagant of clothing, wasted.

His love upon his own daughter and her given feedback of appreciation for what he did, wasted.

Ichigo's spine snapped.

The connection of the past, her whole life spent growing up into a ghost, all of it gave her pain.

Her lower half of her body shredded apart, opening her stomach to reveal her intestines and beating organs inside.

What's the point of keeping the past? What's the point of keeping pain if the only thing it does is hurt her and remind her of her failure to meet expectation?

The entire lower half of Ichigo's flesh body split apart, falling lifelessly to the ground.

"I-Ichigo…" Aiko stepped back, horrified.

Ichigo's upper half now ominously remained suspended in the air, horizontally perpendicular off the ground. Her eyes were white and lifeless and her claws menacingly long and bloody as the thousands of horizontal slit marks continued to drip down, reminding her of the abuse she lived with all her life.

" _Father… what are you doing?!" Ichigo cried as her advanced towards her with the knife, holding out his hand._

" _Give me your arm, my daughter. For every failure I've made upon you, I'll mark that moment with my own hand."_

" _Stay away! You're scaring me! Don't come any closer!"_

 _But her father had cornered her against a wall, causing little Ichigo to hit her back against it. Her father then seized her hand, bringing the knife horizontally to her skin._

" _Father, stop it! Don't do it! It hurts! It- AAAHHH!"_

Her scream echoed through the entire library, splitting open every nearby window, splintering all of the wooden shelves. Ichigo shrieked in agony, the memories of her past reminding her of her pain and the slit marks along her arm a physical reminder.

13 cuts.

13 times, he's failed in changing who she was. It's a common saying that 13 is an unlucky number.

Unlucky- a perfect easy word to describe Ichigo's life. Had her father been more caring, more accepting, this all would've been avoided, wouldn't it?

 **Wouldn't it?**

Ichigo's body now began floating down towards the ground, the defied laws of gravity now gently laid her against the floor.

" _Teke… Teke… Teke…_ "

 _Ichigo and her family had boarded an old fashioned industrial-period train station headed for Tokyo in Musutafu City that day, as her father wished to buy her all the latest fashion to disguise her appearance, which he considered as a "foul ugliness", he calls._

 _In fact he describes her exactly that too many times, which caused the daughter's composure to snap._

 _Snarling, she grabbed her father's throat and threw him overboard against the tracks from the train station, her rage corrupting her emotions and spiraled them out of control._

 _But that lack of control only made her unaware of the upcoming train heading their way as the industrial train's wheels churned against the tracks._

" _Release me, daughter, or we'll both be killed!" Her father demanded briskly, watching the ongoing train head towards them._

" _And allow you to live to torment me with abuse?!_ _ **I don't think so**_ _."_

 _But her father had successfully managed to throw her off, briskly dashing off the tracks as Ichigo madly followed, pulling herself off to her feet._

 _However as soon as she saw her father safely make his way to the other side, she was already too late. The train's wheels screeched deafeningly as the vehicle desperately tried to halt to a stop as Ichigo dove her body forward, reaching towards her father in vengeance but the momentum was too swift; which severed Ichigo's body in half, shredding her spine._

Ichgo's nails scraped against the ground, creating that "Teke, Teke" noise as she pulled herself forward, rising off the ground ominously as the exposed skin underneath her severed body began bleeding horrendously.

"I-It's the 'Teke Teke' Urban Legend' for real!" Soichiro cried, shaking in absolute fear.

"Urban legend?!" Osamu cried, hiding behind him as Ichigo advanced towards them.

"Nishiya!" A voice called, belonging to Best Jeanist as Kamui Woods, whom had released Ichigo from before because of the blinding light and the unnatural force of gravity pulling her away from him shot his branches forward.

Effortlessly Ichigo brought up a clawed hand, catching the branches and began pulling them forward. Kamui Woods cried out in fear as he was dragged straight towards her, meeting her pupiless expression as fresh blood dripped from her mouth as she clutched his neck, squeezing it mercilessly but not too tight so he could speak.

" _Where are my legs_?" She asked, staring straight into his eyes. Kamui Woods shrank under her gaze, horrified.

"I... U-Uhm…"

"Nishiya!" Best Jeanist cried, bringing the last of his threads forward to rescue his comrade but Mt. Lady stopped him, holding him back with her large hands.

"Are you insane?! You're hurt and injured, look what she did to you!" Mt. Lady pointed out the violent slash marks upon his stomach, which gave him pain every time he moved.

"Demon or not, she's going to kill our friend! Do you really think I can just stand around and watch him die?!"

"Don't you think it would be the same thing for _me_ watching _you_ die too?! You're unbelievable, stupid, even!" Mt. Lady snapped, which caused Best Jeanist's eyes to grow wide, not expecting this sort of reply from Mt. Lady.

"Y-You care… about me?"

"Of _course I_ do! Do you honestly think I wouldn't?! Just because I do things under my own volition doesn't mean that I don't care!" Tears began falling down Mt. Lady's eyes. "You and Nishiya were the first people whom actually chose to stand being around me! You both never left me, despite how selfish I acted! Even if Nishiya questions our relationship, he still cared about me! And you too, despite reprimanding us like children, you didn't leave! How could I ever replace something like that, huh?! How could I?!"

From all of his life, Best Jeanist never gave a second thought to friendship. He trained professionally independent all his life, willing to serve others only to the point of getting the job done. He never valued his partners as friends; only tools whom he used and made sure remained useful.

But hearing Mt. Lady call him a friend, this was a different story. This opened his perspective, causing the leather belt around his neck warmer to loosen.

"I-I'm flattered." He spoke, his mouth exposed for the first time. The lower half of his face wasn't anything unique, but it was shocking even for Mt. Lady to look upon.

"Y-Your neck warmer…" Mt. Lady pointed out the lower half of his face was showing but the man didn't mind, for her eyes weren't harm in his mind.

Quickly, Best Jeanist raised his head to Kamui Woods, willing to show his mouth for the first time to him, and spoke words that might save his life.

"Musutafu Industrial Train Station! Answer her that it's the Musutafu Industrial Train Station she lost her legs!" Best Jeanist remembered making the assumption that the Ghost Girl and her criminal friends were at the old train site, assuming that most criminals would spend their night at the Industrial Train, as it was one of the more famous abandoned sites of the Japanese city.

Also he _knew_ of the "Teke Teke" Urban legend, as well as the infamous similar legend known as the "Kashima Reiko" story. The severed girl would ask two questions- one where she lost her legs, and two, what her name was.

"M-Musutafu Industrial Train Station." Kamui Woods answered, meeting the gaze of the horrific monster.

She breathed heavily, staring up ahead upon the distance as she held the suspended man upon his knees. Then she tightened her grip upon his neck, causing him to gasp out in pain.

" _What is my name_?" She asked, which caused the man to shudder, horrified that her questionnaire wasn't over.

"Ichigo!" Aiko cried, attempting to teleport straight towards her but Mizu grabbed her arm, holding her back.

"Let him answer the question! His fate is his own, not yours!" Mizu ordered and Aiko stared up at the suspended man, horrified as she watched Ichigo's arms begin to grow unnaturally long, causing the Pro Hero's knees to rise from the ground and off the floor.

"Ichigo…" Aiko spoke, gritting her teeth. "Why don't you fight that pain?!"

" _Answer me, Shinji Nishiya,_ _ **what is my name**_?!" Ichigo snapped; her voice growing into a snarl, similar to the voice heard by her zombie self only amplified even more demonic than before.

"Y-Your name is… Your name is…" The words suddenly miraculously appeared in his head, remembering what the zombie had called the Ghost Girl when she first appeared, before she took control of her own body.

" _Ichigo Rei_."

"Nishiya…" Best Jeanist shook his head, horrified and turned to Mt. Lady, whom had already dialed her location to the most reliable Pro Hero, their last resort to their hopeless situation.

" _ **Ichigo Rei… Ichigo Rei… Ichigo Rei… Ichigo Rei… Ichigo Rei…**_ "

Ichigo's hands curled into fists and threw Kamui Woods across the room, slamming him into a dismembered pile of bookshelves as she snarled and dashed towards him in blinding speed.

"Ichigo!" Aiko cried, then using her quirk, she teleported towards her, tackling her to the ground.

" **Let go of me, Shamisen Girl!** " Ichigo shrieked, clawing her unnaturally long arms at Aiko.

"To hell with that! Snap out of your rage!" Aiko snapped, attempting to restrain Ichigo but the demon threw her off and continued to advance towards Kamui Woods.

Aiko then closed her eyes, attempting to remember where she dropped her Shamisen's katana until she saw two bluish shapes float towards her in blinding speed, meeting the gaze of her father as he handed her back her sword.

"Father!" Aiko smiled, grabbing her sword and opened up a portal again, attempting to cut distance between her and Ichigo.

"Stay, daughter. You're a mortal, you can't face the wrath of a demon on your own." Her father stopped her, causing Aiko's eyes to grow wide, incredulous upon her father's sudden protectiveness of her.

"B-But-" Aiko began but her father brought a hand to her lips, shushing her.

"Ichigo has become corrupted by her thirst for revenge, it's time we do our part and eradicate her. Father Rei had predicted she would become like this and it's our duty to destroy the demon who defiles the mortal realm." Arata spoke, then entered the portal that Aiko had created, along with Kaito as it shut.

Snarling, Aiko brought her hands into fists in a fit of rage.

"You _idiot_. Only _I_ know her pain." Her eyes grew dark.

* * *

Kamui Woods continued dashing through the library for his life, well aware of his life being on the line as soon as he answered the demon with her own name. But was that not the right answer? Was that not her name?

It occurred to him that might've not been the answer she was looking for… for he suddenly remembered the "Kashima Reiko" story Best Jeanist had told him before, remembering the most essential part that he now regretted he had forgotten.

" _You cannot answer that question with her own name. Instead you tell her what it means in Kanji. Answer her question not with 'Kashima Reiko', but 'Mask Death Demon', the translation._ "However Best Jeanist had told him before that the name of the demon had never been confirmed as "Kashima Reiko", so "Ichigo Rei", the real name of the demon, had been the mistake he made. He should've answered with "Strawberry Spirit", the meaning of "Ichigo Rei".

His foot hit a nearby fallen book as he suddenly tripped to the ground, falling to his knees as he scrambled back, continuing desperately to remain moving forward but the demon was already behind him, swiping her protruding claws at him as she attempted to seize him.

" _ **You won't escape me, for I'll KILL anyone whom dare speaks the name of the existence of my pain!**_ "

Ichigo raised her hand in the air, summoning a large weapon resembling a scythe that contained a black oozing handle made of human bones with the scythe sliding straight out of the back of a skull's head and brought it towards Kamui Wood's stomach, ready to sever him in half, repeating his fate same as hers.

" **Oho, what do we have here**?!" A voice spoke, belonging to a high and mighty voice whom boasted charisma and confidence. Kamui Wood's eyes grew wide in recognition as he turned straight around to meet the presence of the number One Pro Hero- the hero _every_ quirked individual looked up to for justice.

"A-All Might…" Kamui Woods grinned, his heart lifting with relief that he could assure himself he was safe.

" **Nishiya, my boy, what's making you cowering in fear like that? Is it because of the credit you deserve isn't getting recognized by the public?** " All Might joked, attempting to lighten the mood as Kamui Woods stiffened, growing defensive.

"I-It's not that! I… well…"

" **Ohoho, there's no need to act defensive! You need my help, don't you?** " All Might then turned to the demon, whom began spreading her long unnatural slit-open arms as she slid her nails across the ground, reminding them of her presence as she braced herself to strike.

"All Might! Watch out! Despite your strength, Ichigo is a demon! She's far more powerful than the mortal human!" Arata cried, he and his comrade jumping into the fray and stepped in front of the Pro Hero.

" **You sure about that? Because I'm very capable of much power myself.** " All Might pointed out, boasting his confidence but that wasn't enough to convince the Samurai Ghosts as they raised their swords, awaiting the demon to strike.

"Your job as a Pro Hero is getting every civilian to safety, right? Well do a favor, not only for us, but also for _everyone_ here to help the Pros get everyone to safety! As a Ghost and knowing the limitation of the life of a mortal, I order you to stand down!" Arata ordered.

All Might grew silent for a moment, analyzing the situation as he stared at Kamui Woods, noticing the shaken expression upon his face and his desperation to be saved. While Toshinori didn't know too much about demons or the urban legends that followed, he knew that would be the best option for everyone. Quickly he offered his hand to Kamui Woods and the Pro Hero took it. The large American hero then hoisted the man up upon his shoulder, then quickly began heading past the demon, using his superhuman strength to propel him forward out of reach as the demon attempted to sabotage him.

" **Sure thing, my Ghostly friends! After all, saving people is what we heroes do best!** " All Might grinned as he ran towards the rest of the people within the library, which included Best Jeanist and Mt. Lady, as well as the five, now four criminals they had chased throughout their journey.

"I-It's All Might!" Osamu cried in surprise.

"Oh no… that means we're gonna get arrested for sure." Soichiro groaned as All Might met Mt. Lady, whom had grown back to her normal size with Best Jeanist leaning on her shoulders.

"He's all right, but he's cut up around the stomach. Handle him gently, all right?" Mt. Lady warned All Might as he began bringing the Pro Hero upon his back.

"Thank goodness, All Might, you're here." Best Jeanist began to grow weak, his wound now beginning to seep his strength away as he closed his eyes, resting peacefully.

All Might then turned to the criminals nearby and turned to Mt. Lady, curious. Soichiro whimpered and hid behind Osamu, whom rolled his eyes and scampered next to Mizu, who petted him gently on the head.

"Who are they?" He asked, pointing a finger at them.

"They're criminals, but so far, they haven't done anything wrong. They've actually hadn't gotten in our way and one of them's helping us." Mt. Lady pointed at the girl in green hair whom sheathed her katana. "The Shamisen Girl."

Aiko heard the woman speaking about her and turned her head, meeting the gaze of All Might upon her, smiling. Quickly her eyes grew wide and stepped back, unable to believe he was here- in the flesh.

She had heard all the stories- all the glorification of his high-exalted self. But due to her disdain for adults, she never once believed those stories, disregarding them as folly. But seeing him now, rescuing the Pro Heroes when they need him most… she didn't know what to say.

Slowly she began walking towards him, her eyes wide in fascination upon his appearance, upon why he was here. All Might noticed her and waved.

" **So you've been my friends' newest helper, haven't you? Why don't you come closer, don't be afraid!** " All Might beckoned her, causing Aiko to blush.

An adult had complimented her. An _adult_ , whom she always held a grudge against for all her life…An adult who left her life into ruin…

An adult… whom _complimented_ her.

Meanwhile the Ghosts had clashed swords against the Demon, whom swung her scythe around dangerously at them, managing to hold her own despite being outnumbered. Sneering, Ichigo seized this opportunity to grab ahold of one of the ghost's swords, taking his blade and swiping it straight out of his hands. The ghost fell to the ground, weaponless as Ichigo held the blade by its sharp edge, blood flowing down her hand, then squeezed the metal, shattering it.

"Kaito!" Arata cried, charging straight towards Ichigo but the demon curled her raised hand into a fist and slammed it straight into his stomach upon impact, digging straight through his armor plating effortlessly, causing him to spew blood straight out of his mouth.

" _ **Mortal souls among the dead won't stop a being like me. You might as well give up your warrior instinct to protect. I am an unstoppable force with the unquenchable thirst for the blood of the man who goes by the name Hinata Rei.**_ "

"You lay a finger on one of our people we'll _kill_ you!" Kaito threatened, which shifted Ichigo's attention back to him as soon as she threw Arata away. Slowly, she inched towards him, her nails scraped ear-piercingly loud as she brought one hand forward and seized his neck, raising him off the ground.

" _ **And you think a remark like that can save you from death? Quite the contrary, actually. Now, prepare to meet your fate.**_ " Ichigo sneered and began squeezing his neck into oblivion. He gasped for air desperately but found that he was unable to keep himself alive for any longer as he grew limp, out of breath.

"KAITO!" Arata shrieked as he curled his hands into fists, his rage rumbling across the library.

Aiko turned her head, growing afraid for her father as his rage had began spreading a fire throughout the library, its flames eating quickly across the walls.

"Hurry, we have to get everyone out of here!" Mt. Lady quickly grabbed ahold of Soichiro and Osamu, whom struggled out of her grasp as she brought them to All Might.

"Hey! Put me down, woman! Just because you're pretty doesn't mean that I'll let you hold me!" Soichiro raised his fists but All Might hoisted him upon his back along with Osamu, whom decided that, even if being held by a Pro Hero equaled him getting arrested, was the safest option.

"Miss Siren Lady, please cooperate with us. As of now, we're only here to get you to safety. We'll discuss your fate by your criminal actions later." Mt. Lady ordered. Mizu hesitated at first, meeting Aiko, whom had turned her back on them to watch her father clash swords against Ichigo in a bloody battle in a fit of rage, then turned to Mt. Lady and All Might.

"Only if you promise me you'll save Aiko too." Mizu ordered and got upon All Might's back willingly, whom held all of his bodies with ease, then made his way towards Aiko, as promised.

" **The authorities are outside, waiting for me just as I've told them to under your order. Report to them that the situation's under control**." All Might ordered to Mt. Lady, who grinned and gave him a thumbs up.

"Father…" Aiko brought a hand to her heart, feeling the rage of her father's vengeance for his injured and maybe, dead friend. The pain of not having a choice, the pain of losing someone and something important… all of this was something she understood. She felt it. She knew what it was like.

"Don't be in pain like this… Father… Ichigo…"

All Might's footsteps loomed behind her, and Aiko heard them.

"Father… Ichigo… stop hurting each other… You're only gonna give each other pain…"

All Might brought a hand forward and tapped her shoulder. Aiko turned to watch as All Might bring a hand to her, offering her to climb on him for safety.

"Why must everyone I love suffer…" Tears began falling down Aiko's. "What did they ever do to deserve this… I just wanted what's best for everyone, I just wanted them to be happy." She then turned back to her father. "My parents left me because I was being a burden… I left Ichigo to decide her own fate because I encouraged her to be strong…"

She clenched her fists. "But I was wrong, wasn't I?! I let them get so caught up in their own web of belief that they've began hurting! It's my fault that Ichigo's like this… It's my fault my Father will die again and never rest peacefully… and it's my fault that I get everyone arrested by the Pro Heroes! Everything is my fault!"

All Might grew silent for a moment, allowing Aiko to vent her anger upon herself as tears began falling down her eyes as the bloody battle between Ichigo and Arata continued to rage on throughout the library.

Then All Might brought a hand onto Aiko's shoulder.

" **Endure, Shamisen Girl."**

Aiko looked up at All Might, pulling herself up from her despair.

" **A hero cannot save everyone. That is why you endure- endure what you can't have control over. That's how I get by.** " All Might reassured her, grinning.

Aiko nodded slightly and allowed All Might to pick her up and bring her upon his back as he charged forward to bring his casualties to safety. However when he looked up, he realized that the roof was beginning to weaken and it gave way, causing him to brace himself and attempt to protect everyone on his shoulders. He would save them all. He _had_ to save them all.

"All Might's in there, isn't he?! Once again, it hasn't 10 minutes yet and already the library's in flames! This is crazy! It's like the time All Might made his debut, I can't believe it!" A civilian cried in awe as several civilians of Musutafu City watched the burning library fall into ruin as its entire roof gave way, reminiscent of the event that marked the day of All Might's debut into fame. Everyone was watching the news broadcast because of this, as well as a certain quirkless individual whom was most excited as his mother put on the news on their living room TV.

"It's just like that old video you love, Izuku." Inko Midoriya smiled, although she was a bit disturbed upon showing such footage to her son from the start, but he was absorbed in the moment smiling with joy nonetheless.

 **~*AN: Cue All Might Theme Music!*~**

" **HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!** " A courageous laughter burst through the disaster, immediately lightening up the scene as All Might stepped straight out of the wreckage, towing six bodies upon his back.

"He's got more! He managed to save even more people!" The citizens cheered as All Might pulled himself forward, smiling with pride.

" **Fear not, citizens, hope has arrived, because I am here!** " All Might reassured the civilians, which caused everyone to cheer and Izuku to grin nonstop.

Aiko Hikari gazed upon the thousands of eyes upon her as All Might lowered them to safety out of the wreckage. Thousands of nurses and doctors rushed to their aid, to the point where Aiko herself was rolled into an ambulance, her vision darkening but the glimpse of All Might glowing within the public and meeting her gaze with pride made her smile as she closed her eyes.

So there was hope, despite her predicament.

Aiko would save Ichigo. She had to, if it meant staying true to herself and pass on the lesson All Might has told her- to endure.

Because pain is one thing, but enduring it is a whole 'nother.

 **~9o9~**

 **Just to clarify, the video Izuku watched where All Might saves people from disaster, thus marking his debut, is NOT the same instance where All Might saves Aiko and the others from the burning library! Izuku had stated that the video was from "A Long Time Ago", which suggests** _ **when**_ **he saw that video he** _ **began**_ **looking up to All Might. In this storyline, Izuku's already an All Might fan at this point, and when All Might saves everyone again, it's for the second, or maybe, 44** **th** **time he's done it, so by now he's already gotten his reputation. I just wanted to clarify this because you guys might've gotten confused. I wanted this scene to be a homage to his debut, as this marks the turning point of the story- so it'll be an emotional roller coaster from here! Thanks to everyone who's keeping up with this story so far and I hope to see you next chapter! Noir signing off!**


	7. Chapter 7: Shamisen Girl

**Chapter 7: Shamisen Girl**

 **~9o9~**

 _Aiko tilted her head upwards to meet the gaze of her mother, whom began weaving a sakura flower hairpin through her emerald green hair, gently combing her locks in the process._

" _There. You're beautiful." Her mother grinned as she had successfully tied Aiko's hair in a ponytail with the flower hairpin keeping it in place._

" _But I've always been beautiful with or without the pin, haven't I?" Aiko asked, messing with the pin as it began to cause her discomfort. Her mother laughed and hoisted the small girl onto her lap, patting her head._

" _Of course, darling. You're the most beautiful flower of Mother Nature's Garden. That alone is a fact." Her mother reassured her as Aiko grinned proudly, smiling._

 _Immediately footsteps were heard outside the door and her mother turned, her gaze shifting towards the entrance of the house._

" _Could that be…" Her mother suddenly pulled herself off the floor and rushed towards the door, throwing it open. Aiko cautiously followed her, growing afraid for her mother's newfound concern as tears began falling down her eyes._

 _A tall man stood outside the door, dressed in a business uniform with a black cap, which he pulled off to reveal long purple flowing hair. Aiko gasped, stepping back upon recognizing him._

" _Oh Arata, you're home!" Her mother embraced him, crying in his arms._

" _I've missed you too, Evangeline." Arata Hikari embraced her, then turned his attention over to his daughter. "And I see you've taken care of my most beautiful treasure."_

" _I-I'm…" Aiko pointed at herself. "Your most beautiful treasure?"_

" _Of course." Arata nodded as Evangeline stepped to the side, allowing him inside as he knelt over to open his arms, welcoming Aiko into an embrace. "No one can replace you."_

" _I certainly hope not." Aiko teased as she playfully teleported straight into his arms as Arata lifted her off the ground, spinning her playfulling around in a circle._

" _So what stories can you tell us from your American Business Trip? Tales of peril? Adventure? Or…" Aiko sneered at her mother. "_ Romantic endeavors… _"_

 _Evangeline gave Arata an incredulous look, which Arata responded with a burst of laughter._

" _My daughter's rich of amusement today, isn't she? Well, anyway, there are lots to tell. But first- we eat!" Arata growled and pretended to be a large hulking hungry monster that chased Aiko all over the room while she giggled, teleporting herself hiding behind her mother's legs._

" _Waahh! I must run and feed him before he eats me!" Aiko giggled hysterically behind her mother as Evangeline sighed, smiling while shaking her head upon her family's silliness._

" _And so I declared at the top of my lungs once I stood with my comrades outside my boss's door in a mighty roar as soon as he stepped out, we yelled 'We will be paid more!' Scared the bejesus out of him, that's for sure as soon as he saw us!" Arata illustrated himself driving his arms forward and stabbed a pointer finger in the air, which Aiko began giggling hysterically while her mother shook her head._

" _Arata…" Evangeline attempted to knock some sense into him. "You could at least_ try _to be sincerely subtle."_

" _Oh, but that actually happened! How else would I describe it?" Arata grinned, which caused Aiko to burst out laughing._

 _Eventually the man began telling a different story, describing the states, the Golden Gate Bridge of California and how it actually wasn't gold at all but a reddish copper, and the encounter with a quirkless woman._

" _Her hair was green, like an emerald! You've ever seen a girl like her before?" Arata met the gaze of Evangeline, who smirked._

" _She sounds like you, Mama!" Aiko stared up at her mother, whom smiled, regarding her long emerald flowing locks resembling Aiko's own._

" _Of course. But anyway, the strange thing about the states… was that quirked individuals there are quite rare. It surprised me… you know?" Arata brought a hand in the air, conjuring an orb in the air as bright as the sun. Aiko watched as the light in his hands began growing brighter and brighter, illustrating the fleeting curiosity he had, then it began traveling it through the air, spinning around to meet other floating orbs resembling humanoids as they began traveling through Aiko and her mother as her father continued telling his story._

" _It's an interesting world they live in, the exact opposite from our world. Anyway, I came across this woman- this beautiful woman who came up to me and asked me if I had a quirk. I told her yes, of course."_

 _Arata created a figure of himself walking forward towards a long-haired woman, a floating orb of light in his hands as she smiled._

" _She was impressed. But little did I know…" Arata's figure handed the orb to her and she took it, then snatched it forcefully from him, ripping it straight out of his hands forcefully. "…that she would try and steal my power."_

 _The woman then took the orb to several American scientists, carrying the orb with her as she demonstrated its capabilities._

" _The Americans are fascinated upon the abilities of our quirks, because there are so few people who possess them in their population. They become jealous of Japan, who is known to possess the highest population of quirked individuals, and home to the greatest hero alive- All Might. The woman I've met on that day… was a spy of the American government: the Quirk Research Indie Corporation, or AQIRC."_

" _However… my power is not to be underestimated or meant to be held merit by anyone other than the user." The orb in her hands began shifting, spiraling out of her hands quickly as it began forcefully flying through the woman's chest, then eventually through the other generals in the room. "From what I've been told, the Americans couldn't decipher my quirk because they all were destroyed in the process."_

 _Arata then turned to Evangeline, meeting her gaze. "But that doesn't mean I'm going to be let off the hook now. Our government is now aware that the Americans were attempting to sabotage our power and tell me all I know about that incident… that encounter. They've given me the weekend to think about this decision and once I do decide to go back, I won't see you… or Aiko again for a long time."_

 _Evangeline's eyes grew wide, incredulous. "Impossible! What will you have to do to leave us like that?!"_

" _For all I know, they'll want me to be an informant, tell them my experience and keep me under probation until they decide I deem worthy to be let go. Because at the moment…" Arata's figure was then surrounded by the same AQIRC scientists only now they resembled dangerous thugs dressed in lab coats with murderous intent pointing their weapons at him. "I'm a walking target of the US."_

" _But it wasn't_ just _you who's been to the states! There are plenty of other Japanese quirked individuals who had done so before you!" Evangeline's eyes grew wide, unable to believe her husband's words as she stood straight up, walking through Arata's illustrations, causing them to fizzle away. "Why do_ you _have to be responsible for telling information about that when there's others to spare?!"_

" _Evangeline…" Arata's voice shifted into a harsher tone. "Do you really think it's fair to hold those people who haven't been caught by the American responsible for my mistake?"_

 _Evangeline grew quiet, stepping back._

" _It was my mistake, which is why I'm taking responsibility for it. By all means, I must follow my duty as a citizen with a quirk," Arata shifted his attention over to Aiko, and grinned softly. "…and teach my daughter how to be an honest citizen."_

" _Father…" Aiko's eyes began to water, growing afraid upon the fact that her father was going to leave the house again. "Y-You're so…"_

 _Brave._

 _Brave for taking responsibility for one's own mistakes. And so her father did so, taking the Musutafu Industrial Train Station as he stared back at his daughter, grinning softly and promising his return as Aiko looked on, waiting, waiting for her father to keep his promise._

 _Two years came and went._

 _Aiko stared anxiously out the window, thinking her father was just taking his time, as she shouldn't rush what she knew couldn't be controlled._

 _But her father had control over when he would return, did he?_

 _A semester of school came straight afterwards, but Aiko paid little attention to her studies as she continued to stare straight out the classroom window, at the sun as brightly illuminated as her father's quirk as winter turned to spring, the leaves of the trees growing into a healthy green and their fruits blooming into beautiful flowers._

" _Hey, staring at the sun's bad for your eyes. You could get blind by doing that." Said a student next to her._

 _Aiko rolled her eyes. "My eyes can handle UV light, meaning they can handle the brightness of the sun. You'd think I'd know that if you really thought before talking to me."_

 _By then, her mother grew concerned for her daughter's well-being as Aiko continued to remain fixiated on her gaze of the sunset, leaning on the windowsill every day, wishing she could hear her father's voice again and his animated stories. But they never came._

" _Aiko, dear." Evangeline knocked on her door. Aiko didn't answer. The door was then opened and Evangeline stepped into the room, meeting the back of her daughter._

" _Aiko…" Her mother began, but Aiko spoke before she could continue._

" _Why won't he come back?" Aiko's voice cracked, but she couldn't cry. By this point, it was long overdue to cry, as her father had been gone for over a year and half. She had shed enough tears. "I miss him… I miss him so much. I wish he came back… I wish he never left to begin with…"_

 _Her mother sighed and wrapped her hands around her daughter. "He will come home. In moment's time, he'll be here before you know it, and it'll be just the same as before."_

 _Just the same as before... If only that were true in the time that did pass._

 _A month passed and the news of Arata Hikari finally came to the house, only they weren't at all the expectation Aiko and Evangeline wanted._

 _On March 17, Arata Hikari had been captured by the AQIRC organization and was held ransom for two weeks before being finally executed due to the public not taking action to pay for his rescue._

" _We are Pro heroes of the world and we save those who find themselves in trouble across the globe but this case was different… and a sacrifice we must make." Best Jeanist had spoken while being interviewed upon this decision made by the Pro Heroes. "We were obligated to leave Hikari to his fate. If we had gone and engaged, AQIRC would've seized and manufactured our quirks into formidable weapons since our population seems to be the one everyone's interested in because of All Might... which the world will catch onto and soon will lead to absolute chaos in the competition for stealing plans for that formidable weapon and eventually, if powerful countries become interested, WWIII…"_

 _Aiko's mother then had a severe case of open-heart surgery, which had began taking a toll on her health as she remained heartbroken, heartbroken because of the news of Arata's death._

 _She didn't survive._

 _The rent of the Hikari's house couldn't be compensated now that there was no guardian left to the Hikari name so Aiko herself had been transferred to an orphanage in Musutafu, which she absolutely despised and never found joy in staying._

" _Queer lassie, always starin' up at the sun. Could blind her one day."_

" _And what left does she have to lose? Maybe she's better off being blind! After all, that's what her father was, blind-walkin' straight into the states without bein' careful of AQIRC spies!"_

" _He deserved his death for his foolishness, and his woman followed too! Runs straight in the family, blindness does! Blind to mend her own heart, her mother took her own life! How cruel to leave her poor child now, all alone and defenseless, probably cursed to follow the same fate!"_

 _Opinions about her parents' deaths began flowing through the media; most cynical and merciless, believing her father was foolish and blind to deception._

 _But her father was a good person, how could he be deserved of such criticism?_

" _Always lookin' at the sun, aren't ya, you little twig?" A tall boy pulled Aiko whom was leaning against the windowsill away and caused her to hit her back against the floor as he and his comrades cackled at her. "Tryin' to die the same way as your parents? Isn't it the job of a child to learn from their parents' mistakes?"_

 _Aiko snarled, pulling herself off the floor and threw the boy against the wall, strangling him by the neck. By this time, she had already heard enough shit about her parents._

" _Shut the_ _ **fuck**_ _about my father… He is_ _ **not**_ _what you think he is…" Aiko tightened her grip upon his neck, unable to contain her rage. "If I hear one more_ _ **fucking lie**_ _about my father I'll_ _ **kill you**_ _."_

" _Help! Aiko, stop it, I can't breathe! Help me!"_

 _The staff of the orphanage had burst into the room and had seized Aiko away from the boy, and had locked her away from the other children in her own room, leaving her to grieve by herself. By that point, that officially was the last straw and Aiko had opened her windowsill in the middle of the night and began climbing out the window up onto the roof, staring straight up at the moon. While it wasn't as bright as the sun, she brought a hand to the flower hair tie she wore on her head, brushing them as she noticed that tied upon her head there were two strings- two hair strands each belonging to her mother and father. She then released them and stared upon them in her hands._

" _Father… Mother…" Aiko stared up at the moon, the brightest object in the night sky that night. "Why have you abandoned me? Had it been your choice? Did you_ want _to have to leave me to my fate? Is this…" She closed her palm upon the strands in her hand. "…what you wanted of me?"_

 _The tears she couldn't cry before now began to fall, and she brought her head up desperately to the sky. "Tell me… damn you, I want to know. I don't know what to believe anymore after hearing what everyone says of you..."_

 _She brought her hands into fists and cried out in anger._

" _TELL ME, DAMN YOU! WHY HAVE YOU ABANDONED ME?! DO YOU REALIZE WHAT IT'S LIKE, HEARING THE CRAP THEY TELL ABOUT YOU EVERY SECOND OF THE DAY?! DO YOU?! TELL ME, COWARDS! TELL ME!"_

 _Tell me…_

 _Tell me…_

Tell me…

Aiko burst awake, pulling herself off the bed. Monitors of her heartbeat suddenly began beating quickly, which represented her elevated form. The girl looked around suspiciously, eyeing the all-white room and found that she was inside of a hospital. Pulling herself up, Aiko found that she was dressed in a hospital gown and her clothes were resting on a nearby chair, evidently housing singed patches. Nevertheless she decided to put them on. When she had finished dressing, she heard a knock outside the door.

"Aiko, it's us. Are you all right?" A voice called, belonging to Mizu. Aiko's gaze dropped to the floor, unsure how to answer her but decided there wouldn't be any harm in letting them in.

"We've been so worried about you," Osamu spoke as Aiko had let them in, opening the door. "We thought you dead."

"Wow, I thought I was the only one to assume that." Soichiro teased but that didn't lighten the mood as Aiko found her Shamisen guitar resting next to the chair she found her clothes. She suddenly remembered where she got the old instrument, finding it in a guitar shop in the rural streets of Musutafu City, which the shop owner was kind enough to offer it for free because she didn't have any money. She had decided then that guitar would be the purpose the two strings her mother and father had left her served.

"Aiko… is something the matter?" Mizu asked, noticing Aiko's silence as she refused to meet their glances and began strumming upon the two strings of her Shamisen guitar, sitting upon the bed. "You know you shouldn't have let us in if you didn't want to talk."

"Or maybe she did, just so she didn't want to be lonely." Osamu suggested.

"Or maybe she just wanted us to shut up about assumin' her dead." Soichiro suggested, which in return, he received dirty looks from Mizu and Osamu.

"Do you guys ever wonder…" Aiko suddenly raised her voice, causing her friends to immediately shift their attention over to her as she pointed out the window at the moon above. "What it's like up in Heaven?"

"Wouldn't the afterlife depend on what you do in your current life? It should only be natural, that those who sin go to hell." Osamu suggested.

"I mean if you're talking about what the Bible says, then by all means read the Bible." Soichiro suggested.

Mizu grew silent, her gaze fixated upon the sky above, remembering her daughter, remembering what she had spoken to her about the sky above.

" _Stories I read say the world up there is so beautiful. I can only imagine what it's like once I get there._ "

Tears began falling down Mizu's eyes but she refused to let them fall as her hands grew into fists, digging them into her thighs to keep herself composed.

"Mizu…" Osamu attempted to coax her, bringing a hand to her shoulder.

"It's nothing." Mizu reassured him. "It's just… It's just I remembered Airi."

Aiko turned her head as Mizu smiled, as she knew the mention of that name would catch her attention.

"Airi used to wonder the same thing, you know, what it's like to be up there, watching us from above. I suppose it's only natural that when you're living you wonder what it's like to be in Heaven, or at least, be at peace." Mizu looked ahead. "I only wished my daughter the best of life whether it be now or the after. It seems… she has gotten it."

Aiko stared at the floor, smiling gently. "I understand you now."

Mizu's eyes grew wide, incredulous upon Aiko's sudden change in tone as she scooted forward and embraced the Siren woman. "I understand why you want to protect me now. Because of Airi, you wish the best for any stray girl you find. It makes sense, to me, at least."

"A-Aiko…" Mizu's voice cracked, the tears she had desperately attempted to keep had now began falling as Aiko smiled.

"Don't be afraid to cry in front of me. In fact I think it's natural once in a while for the strongest to cry." Aiko grinned, comforting her. Mizu then pulled her closer, shedding those tears as Aiko saw her mother again… in Mizu.

"I'll help you get Ichigo back, by all means, if that's what you want." Mizu declared as she met Aiko's gaze.

"Thank you, Mizu." Aiko grinned, as Soichiro and Osamu exchanged glances.

"It seems we're bustin' outta here to kick some zombie ass!" Soichiro cheered as Osamu shook his head, smiling.

* * *

"I swear, it's strange that the staff let Aiko's friends stay outside her door all night, even when the hospital closed! I don't like that at all!" Mt. Lady crossed her arms as she and Kamui Woods stood outside Best Jeanist's door, waiting for the sun to rise so the nurse could resume their routine and let them into their comrade's room.

"I mean, we're pretty much doing the same thing for Hakamata." Kamui Woods pointed out. "And I thought I'd be the one complaining the most. Seems our roles have reversed."

"Well it's only like that because you're still traumatized upon seeing that Teke-Teke monster! You and Jeanist know the story! Everyone in Japan knows it!"

"Yeah." Kamui Woods rubbed the back of his head. "It seems… I've changed a little."

"Are you two going to stay the night again?" A voice spoke, belonging to a nurse whom stepped forward to meet the Pro Heroes' presence.

"You kiddin'?! He's our friend!" Mt. Lady brought a hand to her chest. "You really think we're just gonna leave him here without anyone to walk him out?! Of course we will! Right, Nishiya?"

Kamui Woods simply nodded in return, and the nurse chuckled.

"Very well, then. By all means, you're welcome to do so. But make sure you all get some sleep too, sleep is very important for your health." The nurse chuckled upon Mt. Lady's adamant comments and began walking away. Mt. Lady sighed, crossing her arms.

"Hmph, who the hell does she think she is?! Of course we're gonna look after Hakamata one way or the other! Besides, we'll need his advice whether or not we should arrest those crazy fools in the first place!" Mt. Lady pouted as Kamui Woods found that the more he stared through the cracks of Best Jeanist's hospital room window blinds, the more he noticed the shining thread weaved across the room. Quickly he nudged Mt. Lady to look at the window, which she stared at it, confused.

"I saw something… one of Jeanist's threads, I believe." Kamui Woods spoke as he stepped forward, peeking inside the window as Mt. Lady followed.

Suddenly the door creaked open, causing the both of them to jump back in fright. Best Jeanist was inside; threads spiraled all over the room as he began weaving back his clothing, patching them up with his hospital blanket. There was a web of threads around him, knots placed in random spots that resembled a working map, which depicted all of the possible combinations as to where the criminals were in their whereabouts should they attempt to escape, just as Best Jeanist had predicted… in case.

"Wow, you've been busy." Mt. Lady regarded Best Jeanist's surroundings as he was fast at work, sewing his clothing back together with his quirk.

"No hero should ever remain idle, even in pain. I've a job to do, and that's to find our missing criminals now on the loose." Best Jeanist spoke, the threads in his hands beginning to weave almost seamlessly.

"But… What are you talking about?" Mt. Lady and Kamui Woods exchanged glances, confused.

"The Shamisen girl's friends are staying another night waiting for her to recover. I don't think they're thinking about escape right now." Kamui Woods suggested.

"You know how criminals work. Once they've escaped supervision, they seize whatever chance they can get to escape." Best Jeanist cut his threads, now finished weaving as he tied another knot connecting from one thread suspended in the air that was loosely hanging to another suspended thread. "Even if one of them is injured, that doesn't mean that the first chance she awakens they immediately plan their escape."

"Not all criminals like that think ahead, Hakamata." Mt. Lady pointed out. "Not all of them are smart like you."

"I never underestimate my opponent, no matter how incompetent they are." Best Jeanist stood up, regarding his handiwork as the threads marked all possibilities laid out to him like a readable map.

"Well… if you're so adamant about them escaping, why don't we check up on them?" Mt. Lady suggested as she began heading towards the door. "We're Pro Heroes, we're authorized to visit the Shamisen Girl's room."

"Good idea." Kamui Woods stood up and began following the woman. "For once, Takeyama's got an idea that actually works."

"Hey! I heard that!"

"You heard wrong!"

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"Did not!"

Best Jeanist sighed at the two's small banter, then decided it would be best he followed as well.

However by the time the three heroes had reached the door, the criminals were nowhere to be found, not outside the Shamisen girl's room or inside. They were gone.

"I told you. Now, shall I indulge you on how to get them back?" Best Jeanist crossed his arms, pointing back to his room across the hall.

"Just like we've been doing the past few days, huh." Mt. Lady teased as Kamui Woods chuckled.

"Let's." He agreed and the three heroes walked back to Best Jeanist's room to plan on how to catch those criminals, and lock them up for good.

 **~9o9~**

 **I apologize for the late update again; motivation for this story's really beginning to wane on me… But anyway, I've already outlined two more chapters for this story, so I will attempt to remain at the schedule of every Sunday. The three-day weekend's coming up for me so I'll have time then to make sure this story is finished! I'm always adamant about finishing up my stories no matter how bad they get, so stay tuned! Noir signing off.**

 **Man, Inuyasha's soundtrack is so good… I've been listening to it while I was writing the scene between Aiko and Mizu… It's so sad but so inspiring.**


	8. Chapter 8: At Hell's Door

**Chapter 8: At Hell's Door**

 **~9o9~**

The streets of Musutafu City laid bare and desolate of the night sky… the winter fog clouding the corners of dark alleys where unsuspecting wanderers often find themselves lost.

But there wasn't one lost soul in this cold winter tonight… instead there was a creature… carrying her severed body with her nails creaking across the floor.

" _There had been numerous reports of strange death occurrences happening within the streets of Musutafu City… mostly taking place within dark alleys or isolated areas not located within the vicinity of public areas known to house large amounts of people. I would advise those who travel at night to steer clear of the streets, to travel in groups, or simply, take public transportation or vehicles. There have been ominous reports of a strange creature spotted and witness photos sent in for this broadcast report reveal a rather disturbing photo of a girl standing on her arms without a lower body with long hair, along with what appears to be blood dripping from her severed body. Those who claim to recognize the creature dub it the 'Teke-Teke Monster', after the old Japanese urban legend that goes by the same name. Whatever it is… whatever purpose it wishes to gain from its presence within the dark streets of our city… we hope it'll leave soon and not take any more lives along with it. That is all._ "

News broadcast after broadcast began showing publically across the regions of Japan, advising everyone to lock their doors, keep their loved ones close, and to avoid traveling out at night. Unprecedented deaths were also occurring within the streets as well at night, leading to fear being cast upon the unsuspecting civilian as the nights grew long. As of now, very few people traveled the streets of Musutafu City at night, which was advantageous to the monster who traveled upon it.

The scraping noises trekking through the streets only grew louder and more painfully ear-piercing, the voice of a low straining groan accommodating it belonging to Ichigo as she pulled herself forward, straining with every effort to cover distance. She was bleeding profusely, slash marks gushing profusely from her injured body, evident from her battle with Arata. She had narrowly managed to escape his wrath when he burned the library down, allowing her to escape within the wreckage as he lost sight of her. Now she couldn't risk attempting to fight again in this state so she began focusing on her mission. She had only one goal in her endeavor- to find the soul of her father- and crush it with her cold, dead hands.

She won't stop until she finds him… she won't stop until his severed head fades away into dust- to pay back for all the pain and suffering he had made upon her in the past. He deserved it, after all, not once did he treat her with respect, with recognition and happiness as being his own daughter. And not once will she be kind in _his_ death and will return the favor.

An off-tune Shamisen guitar was heard, interrupting the desolate city of the night. Ichigo smirked, curling her long, scraping nails into fists.

So she won't be alone tonight.

Suddenly, a figure in blinding speed charged towards her, bringing his knees forward and extended them into swift kick against her chest. Ichigo, having her senses heightened by her old body that contained the quirk she was born with, moved herself to the side and caught the leg of the figure mid-air. She sneered as she recognized the red chameleon, gaping at her with surprise as she slammed him to the ground.

" **Quick, you may be, but not quick enough to escape my grasp**." Ichigo smirked, tightening her grip upon his leg as he cried out in pain.

"Maybe, but who said this was a race?" Soichiro gritted his teeth as he took the pain, sneering as another figure suddenly jumped behind Ichigo, climbing upon her back as Ichigo cried, finding herself falling to the ground.

"Now!" Osamu cried as he restrained Ichigo's abnormally large arms as she growled in anger, attempting to throw the dog off of her. There were earplugs in his ear, ready for what was about to come to fruition. He winced when he realized he had drenched himself in Ichigo's blood, his paws red from handling her.

" **UNHAND ME, YOU INFERNAL CREATURE! IT IS NOT YOU I'M AFTER! RELEASE ME, AND I MAY SPARE YOU!** " Ichigo snarled, scraping her teeth against the concrete as Mizu stepped forward, her heels clicking against the ground as her face once again shifting into a maul of teeth resembling a Siren. She then shrieked at the top of her lungs, causing Ichigo to groan in pain, the sound waves ripping through shreds of her skin and obliterated her eardrums, immobilizing her.

"We've got her…" Soichiro smirked as he began plucking earmuffs from his head. "Man, that was loud."

"You don't have ears." Mizu narrowed her eyes as she stepped forward, regarding Soichiro.

"Uh, yeah I do. They're not made like yours, all flappy and full of cartilage, they're microscopic." Soichiro made a pinching motion with two of his fingers as Ichigo snarled, scraping her maul of teeth against the ground, drool spilling from her mouth.

" **Among you there lies one missing. Where is she?** " Ichigo demanded, her voice raising in severity but she made no move to continue struggling. It was as though she was waiting, waiting for the opportune moment to escape.

"That bodes none of your concern." Mizu sneered and brought her heel against one of the monster's injured hands, crushing it as she reopened a wound from Ichigo's arm. The monster snarled in pain as Mizu brought her hand to Ichigo's chin to have her meet her gaze. "What is _mine,_ though, is _who_ you're after."

Ichigo sneered. " **And why should it matter to you? He is not among the living. By all means, my mission should concern none of you. You've brought me to life and I've made use of your kindness. Spare me your small-talk, it does nothing but slow me down.** "

"Then why did you kill people who wander in the streets at night alone?! If whoever you're after's not among the living, why did you kill those people?!" Mizu snapped.

" **Simple. They were in the way. Those who find themselves obsessed with the paranormal go out of their way to catch the monster, taking photographs, setting traps, it's all temporary fun. I want nothing of it, and I want nothing to stand in my way.** "

"You _monster_ …" Mizu shook her head in disapproval. "I _liked_ you, Ichigo. You were the kindest person on our team. Now you go out of your way to make everyone's lives worse! You've become the opposite of what you were before, a monster!"

" **I am not a monster!** " Ichigo snarled, suddenly brining her upper body forward, throwing off Osamu. " **I am vengeance! I don't find pleasure in torturing innocent souls that don't pertain to my goal! I want nothing more of the living; all they've given me is nothing but hell!** "

She then extended her arms forward, scraping herself painfully from Mizu's heel as she brought her claws forward, swiping at the Siren Woman. She narrowly avoided the attack as Ichigo caught the woman by the hair, yanking upon her locks and throwing her to the ground.

" **I want you and your damn cronies to stay out of my way. If you choose to intervene, I won't hesitate to destroy you.** "

Ichigo then brought a claw to her chin, bringing, now _her_ up to meet her gaze as she sneered, pulling herself forward in blinding speed.

"Don't let her get away!" Osamu cried as Soichiro charged forward, attempting to intercept the monster. Ichigo saw him coming and dodged straight out of the way as Soichiro missed his kick. He landed on his feet and charged towards her again, bringing his arms forward, now raising them for a punch as soon as he was in range.

" **Pathetic animal.** " Ichigo sneered, raising her arm as a long black staff formed within her hands and a long scythe formed alongside it, its skulls keeping the two pieces together as she brought it forward, swiping it straight at Soichiro.

Soichiro's eyes grew wide in horror as he found his hands right before his eyes slice clean straight off, blood spraying profusely from his severed limbs.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAGGGHHH!" Soichiro shrieked in pain as he tumbled to the ground, unable to move as he stared at his severed hands, shaking in absolute disbelief. "I-Impossible… My hands… my hands a-aren't gone… a-are they? They're still on… no… this… this can't be real…"

The chameleon attempted to reach for his severe hands that had fallen to the floor and attempted to seal them back together.

"Come on… come back on… come back…" Soichiro's eyes began shaking with desperation as his hands wouldn't come on.

Ichigo then stood up, twirling her staff forward and began dragging herself forward, stepping dangerously towards Soichiro to finish him off.

"Come on, come on, come on, come on, come on…" Soichiro attempted to put them back together as he noticed that his scales were already beginning to grow back, connecting to his severed hands' dead skin.

"Leave your limbs, Soichiro! You could always grow a new pair! Hurry and get out of there before Ichigo cuts you in half!" Osamu charged forward, attempting to rescue his comrade from Ichigo as she sneered, raising her scythe forward and swung.

Blood spewed from Osamu's mouth as he found himself mid-air in front of Soichiro, the gaze of his comrade flashing before his eyes.

"O-Osamu?" Soichiro stared upon his comrade whom had stepped in his way, a slash mark deeply engraved upon his back spewing a torrent of blood. The dog humanoid fell to the ground, his pupils darkening.

"O-Osamu… H-Hey…" Soichiro stared at him, his voice shaking with even more disbelief than when his hands were sliced clean off. "Osamu… O-Osamu…"

There was nothing else that stood in Ichigo's way of finishing off her prey as she continued stepping forward, her face contorting into a sadistic grin as she swung her scythe.

"Osamu…" Tears began falling down Soichiro's eyes as his friend didn't answer him as his wound continued to bleed as he shrieked his friend's name in agony.

"OSAMUUUUUUUUUUU!"

A teleportation portal suddenly opened up behind Ichigo as a katana pierced straight through her chest before Ichigo could finish the final blow.

The monster turned, meeting the gaze of Aiko Hikari as she brought her katana against her chest.

" **So you finally came, right after your friend died. How fitting, yet utterly inconvenient.** " Ichigo sneered as Aiko snarled, bringing her katana straight out of the monster's chest as she raised her blade, dripping with Ichigo's blood.

"I'm going to put an end to your stupid plight. Just give it up, already, it'll do you more harm than good." Aiko met Ichigo's gaze.

" **Hmph, you think you know what it's like to be rejected, being treated like a disappointment all your life?!** " Ichigo snarled, raising her scythe forward and clashed it against Aiko's own, causing Aiko to block her blade. " **Not every child born in this shithole of a world is a perfect child with loving parents!** "

Ichigo swung her blade again, causing Aiko to jump straight in the air and land on top of it, running alongside it and swung her blade. Ichigo saw her coming and grabbed her waist and threw her straight off but Aiko teleported again, clashing blades against her.

"Ichigo, you're not alone in that feeling!" Aiko cried ducking to avoid another swing from Ichigo's scythe, then raising her blade again to block another blow. "I know what it's like to feel disappointed, to be rejected by what people think of you, it's painful! Stupid, even!"

Aiko then reached forward and grabbed the handle of Ichigo's scythe, causing her to snarl in anger and attempt to shake her off. "But you're not alone in that feeling, because I get it too! Ever since we've met on that first day, ever since you came to me to keep me company, I've never forgotten what you did! You've made me feel like I had someone, someone to share my feelings with! Remember what you did, Ichigo, you're not alone either!"

" **LET GO!** " Ichigo cried, successfully managing to release her weapon from her opponent's grip but Aiko had placed a portal upon it, causing it to sever in half. Ichigo's eyes grew wide as her weapon snapped in half before her very eyes, its pieces clattering to the ground.

"Talk to me, Ichigo. Tell me what happened between you and your father. You can't be alone in your pain forever." Aiko offered as she raised a hand towards the severed monster.

"S-Stay away!" Ichigo cried, realizing she was defenseless as she brought her arms forward to discourage the Shamisen Girl but she simply raised her katana and sliced new wounds upon her. The monster realized her voice wasn't as severe as before as Aiko stepped forward towards her. "D-Don't come any closer!"

However Aiko had already brought her arms around the girl, embracing her. Ichigo's eyes grew wide in horror as she gripped the Shamisen Girl's shoulders, attempting to pry them off, groaning with futile effort. However, Aiko continued to embrace her, never letting the girl go, whom had offered her company that day before… to offer to be with her when her days were low, her motivation to live, short. She never wanted to let that girl go, she didn't want to lose her. Because if she did, then she would suffer the inevitable fate her mother had, whom had been unable to live with her grief. Aiko didn't want this fate upon any other person, and she certainly didn't want this of Ichigo.

The monster then shrieked at the top of her lungs, her skin cracking once again, but instead of violently snapping or bleeding, it had simply began flaking away, flowing like petals within the wind. Ichigo's body began glowing, her body a bluish tint as she began growing transparent again, resembling the Ghost Girl Aiko knew that day.

"Hi, Ichigo." Aiko smiled as Ichigo met her gaze, resting upon her arms as a surprised expression was upon the Ghost Girl's face, rubbing her forehead.

"W-What happened?" Ichigo wondered aloud as Aiko smiled gently.

"You'll be alright. You'll be with me."

This made Ichigo smile as she chuckled a little.

"Whatever I did… whatever harm I gave to you… I-I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it. It's over now." Aiko slowly stood up, allowing Ichigo to stand upon her own two feet, which had miraculously grown back. She was no longer a walking upper half; now she had her legs.

Suddenly, branches then ripped through the sky, ripping Ichigo straight from Aiko's arms as the Ghost Girl cried out in horror, struggling against them to no avail.

"Ichigo!" Aiko cried, reaching for her but threads then wrapped straight around her, bringing her arms tightly to her waist, immobilizing her.

"Aiko!" Ichigo screamed back but loud stomps were soon heard, belonging to a giant hulking woman stomping upon the streets, surrounding the whole area with a giant train with its cars in her hands, raising it upwards and ready to chuck it straight down at them. Aiko recognized it was the same train from the Musutafu Industrial Train Station, the same train station Ichigo had taken her to before.

The Shamisen Girl then found herself thrown forcefully backwards and felt rough hands grip her shoulders, preventing her from escaping.

"Now, shall we negotiate our terms and conditions regarding the fate of our dear Ghost Girl? It would certainly be a pleasure to do so without having to resort to violence." A voice, sly and haunting that Aiko recognized with disdain, had spoken, belonging to the denim-dressed Pro Hero, Best Jeanist.

 **~9o9~**

 **Ever seen the anime OVA "Black Rock Shooter"? It's a great movie; I got a lot of inspiration for the "scythe vs. sword" fight between Ichigo and Aiko from BRS and Dead Master's fight in the movie. It's on YouTube, actually, I would highly recommend, although the plot's a bit confusing. Anyway, only one more chapter to go! Stay tuned!**


	9. Chapter 9: Sayonara, Ghost Girl

**Chapter 9: Sayonara, Ghost Girl**

 **AN: Gonna be some kickass action that don't really make a lot of sense in terms of gravity and practicality, but you know what, screw things that make sense! Also there's cursing, a bit more than usual. But hey, incessant nonsense and swearing is how I role!**

 **~9o9~**

"Now, shall we negotiate our terms and conditions regarding the fate of our dear Ghost Girl? It would certainly be a pleasure to do so without having to resort to violence." A calm-collected voice spoke, belonging to none other than Best Jeanist himself, his gaze lowering to Aiko, who snarled, attempting to escape his grasp.

"Aiko!" Ichigo cried, reaching for her, but wooden branches held her back, belonging to Kamui Woods as he restrained her from moving.

"Not another word, Ghost Girl, or I won't hesitate to injure you fatally if you try and assist that criminal!" Kamui Woods warned, tightening his grip upon her.

"She's not a criminal!" Ichigo snapped, grabbing ahold of his branches and attempted to shred them apart. "She's my friend, my _best_ friend!"

"Hey…" Soichiro stared up at Mizu, whom gazed upon Aiko as she was being held in place by Best Jeanist by her own clothing threads as Mt. Lady held the Industrial Train above their heads, threatening to lower it if they attempted to escape. "T-This… isn't for real… is it?"

"We've got you all in our grasp, Criminal. There is no escape for you now. By all means, hand yourself over. It would save us a lot of trouble, and repent for unnecessary violence." Best Jeanist spoke calmly, his voice eerily bringing chills down Aiko's spine, reminding her of their now hopeless situation.

"You're cruel…" Aiko breathed heavily, averting her eyes upon the hopeless sight. "After all we've done for you this far…"

"Criminals are all the same, regardless of what good they have left in them. They defy the law; they've made their offense- the damage is done. There is no going back, it's as simple as that." Best Jeanist tightened his grip upon her threads. "And besides, all _you've_ done is destroy a library. You think we can simply look over that? Honestly, how foolish such a thought. Now, what is your answer?"

"YOU'RE KIDDIN' ME?!" A voice cried, belonging to Soichiro as he stood straight up, raising the stub of his missing fist at Mt. Lady. "YOU THINK _NOW'S_ THE BEST TIME TO ARREST US?! WE'VE JUST LOST A FRIEND, SOMEONE JUST _DIED_ , YOU KNOW! AT LEAST GIVE US A FEW MINUTES TO GRIEVE, FOR ONCE!" Tears began falling down his eyes as he shook his head, covering his eyes in shame for doing so. "For heroes… you guys are _heartless_."

Kamui Woods and Mt. Lady, whom had heard that remark, raised their heads in alarm, bringing their gazes back to Best Jeanist. After all, he was the guy with the plan, _he_ was in charge of the whole operation.

The denim-dressed man sighed. "It's natural that you think that way. But death is a natural part of life." Threads began growing from his own clothes, this time, raising them forward towards Mizu and Soichiro.

"But that point of view's coming from a criminal like you who's made us trouble in the past! You think you can just be taken seriously for that?!"

The threads tightly wrapped around the two criminals, causing them to fall to the ground, immobilized as they both found their arms tightly wrapped to their chests and their heads against the ground.

"Our job as a Pro Hero is to deliver justice! Those who oppose the law are to be punished for their crime!" Best Jeanist snapped one set of his fingers, and the threads that weren't used retracted back to his clothing.

" _And you think that makes you happy_?" A voice snarled.

Best Jeanist turned his head down at his hostage. Aiko's gaze was dark, her mouth forming into a smirk.

"Pathetic." Aiko sneered and teleported straight out of his grasp, disappearing.

"Crap!" Best Jeanist realized he had forgotten to keep Aiko from using her quirk as she appeared again and raised her sword, slamming it straight into Best Jeanist, whom had conjured a hardened blade from his denim clothing, which had began to shred slowly from Aiko's grip.

"What a pitifully weak-ass attempt at a sword." Aiko mocked Best Jeanist's makeshift blade as she brought her foot against it and propelled herself off. "But I must admit, I admire the creativity of it."

Best Jeanist raised his makeshift blade, then split it apart to reveal thousands of spiraling threads that lunged straight for Aiko in a torrential wave. The girl sneered and with a blink of an eye, she charged straight forward and in blinding speed, sliced them all to shreds.

"Impossible…" Best Jeanist's eyes grew wide as Aiko raised her blade straight in front of her and swung.

"Aiko!" A voice cried, interrupting Aiko in midair as she froze, recognizing that voice. This gave Best Jeanist the opportunity to bring the palm of his hand straight to her chest,

grabbing ahold of her clothing, then using the threads he snagged from it, swung her around in a spiraling circle, then slammed her against the ground hard on impact. Aiko cried in pain, blood trekking from her forehead as she stabbed her blade into the ground, pulling herself up.

"How disappointing, that's all you've left in you? Cutting my threads and threatening to slice my head off but not following through? And you thought I was the pathetic one." Best Jeanist raised his arms again, sending his threads spiraling towards Aiko in blinding speed.

Meanwhile, Ichigo had grabbed ahold of Kamui Woods' branches and they had began to splinter from her grip, her features contorting into a frightening snarl.

"What the-" Kamui Woods cried out in horror as in blinding speed Ichigo had shredded herself free from his grasp as the splinters of his branches flew in the air, his mouth open in shock as Ichigo charged to Aiko's aid in the nick of time.

Quickly she raised her hands and grabbed ahold of Best Jeanist's threads, pulling them forward, along with its user.

"What is your quirk?" Aiko turned to Ichigo, curious as Best Jeanist found himself being pulled closer against his will.

Ichigo grabbed the man by the chest, raising him off the ground with her quirk as she began squeezing his chest.

"Instrumentality manipulation." Ichigo answered as Best Jeanist grasped at his chest, his clothes tearing at Ichigo's grip as his eyes grew wide in terror. "I manipulate whatever I touch to break on impact by changing its molecular instrumental structure, softening its components. I can also manipulate my senses as well, manipulating the structure of my body to accommodate whatever I need- such as seeing my opponents' moves before they make them, and well, virtually anything. Basically anything that can be manipulated, will be manipulated."

"I like that." Aiko smiled as Ichigo raised Best Jeanist higher, then slammed him against the ground and planted her foot straight on top of him, crushing him. "You could practically do anything with that."

"Hakamata!" Kamui Woods and Mt. Lady cried in fear for their comrade but Best Jeanist raised his head, snarling in defiance.

"To hell with that! Restrain them!" Best Jeanist cried, and Mt. Lady turned back to her captured criminals underneath her foot, but found that they had disappeared.

"We're already two steps ahead of you, giant lady!" Soichiro sneered, bringing his now regrown hands forward and grabbed ahold of the industrial train caboose end.

"The hell are you doing?!" Mt. Lady snapped at him, distracted while Mizu, whom had been resting upon her shoulder the entire time, morphed into her Siren form and shrieked straight in her ear.

"AAAAAAAAAAGGGHHH!" Mt. Lady shrieked, plummeting forward as the Industrial train began falling forward straight out of her hands.

"Now this is gonna be the best part!" Soichiro grinned, gripping tightly upon the caboose as he turned to Ichigo, smirking. "HEY GHOST GIRL, LET'S GIVE EM' FUCKERS PAYBACK!"

"Right with ya, Rodent!" Ichigo grinned, squatting down and manipulating the structure of her legs, she propelled herself up straight off the ground, reaching for Soichiro and gripped him.

"The term is _reptile,_ not rodent." Best Jeanist snarled, attempting to pull himself up with an arm.

"Not so fast, denim man." Aiko slammed her katana straight into her palm, which caused him to shriek in pain. She buried the blade deep into the ground, which as Best Jeanist continued to pull himself, he only found his hand even more in pain as it slid deeper up the blade.

"Together, now, Ghost Girl!" Soichiro grinned as Ichigo held with him the railings of the Industrial Train as it was vertical straight up into the sky. The ground shook upon impact as Mt. Lady fell face-first onto the ground, Mizu on top of her back like standing upon a marooned whale as she looked up at Ichigo, grinning proudly.

"Now that's what I remember you for." Mizu grinned as Ichigo brought her entire weight forward, carrying the train with her as it began plummeting straight towards the ground.

"CRAP! IT'S GONNA HIT US!" Kamui Woods shrieked, pointing straight at the falling object as he ran straight for Mt. Lady, raising a fist at her. "WAKE UP, YOU DAMN WOMAN! THAT TRAIN'S GONNA FALL ON US SO HURRY UP AND CATCH IT!"

"Aghh…" Mt. Lady rubbed her left ear, which had begun bleeding profusely as Mizu dug her heel into the middle of her large back.

"You can't stop a train from runnin' til it's derailed." Mizu grinned, bringing a hand to a salute and a hand to her hip. "In this case, you can't stop this train from fallin on y'all!"

"Eat this, motherfuckers!" Ichigo grinned, throwing the train forward straight down to the ground.

"HOLY FUCK!" Kamui Woods shrieked, the train plummeting down straight towards them as he burst into a sprint, running as if life depended on it, which it did. "TRAIN GONNA FALL ON US! TRAIN GONNA FALL ON US! TRAIN GONNA FALL ON US! TRAIN GONNA- AAAAAAHHHHH!"

BLAAAAAMMM!

What must've hit the ground could've been the end as we knew it, but luckily, the impact was only as strong as an earthquake as the train shook the Earth, impacting the space around the Pro Heroes as they were literally shaken to death.

Aiko and Mizu cheered, raising their hands to Soichiro and Ichigo in the air.

"We did it!" Aiko cried in laughter, jumping up and down. "That was awesome!"

"Hear that?! WE GOT EM'! FUCK YEAH!" Soichiro cheered, unable to contain his coarse tongue as Ichigo grinned, carrying the rodentreptile to the ground, landing upon Mt. Lady's back, which cushioned their fall, rejoining with Mizu.

"Oh boy… what day is it, today?" Mt. Lady asked weakly, unable to contain her utter disbelief as she found herself shaking uncontrollably because of the impact.

"Eenie, meenie, miny, moe, catch a tiger by its toe… Fuck it, I'll pick Sunday… Oh how lovely … my birthday will be on a Sunday in 2018…" Kamui Woods drunkenly replied, teetering upon where he stood as he eventually tumbled to the floor, passing out.

"It seems your theatrics finally paid off…" Best Jeanist's stuttered, clawing upon the ground as though his life depended on it, worrying if he let go he would fall into a never-ending abyss below. "So _that's_ what the Ghost Girl's quirk was capable of…

"You better believe it." Ichigo smiled, sliding off Mt. Lady's back with Soichiro in her hands. She giggled as Soichiro attempted to wrestle from her grasp. "Aww, you look all cute wrapped up in a little ball. I shall call you 'Cheerio Soichiro', because you look like a cheerio all bundled up like that!"

"Oh HELL no, first 'Rojo', now 'Cheerio'?! No way, I ain't gonna let ya call me nicknames too!" Soichiro sobbed, scrambling successfully out of the Ghost Girl's grasp as she giggled uncontrollably as she approached Aiko, waving her hand.

"So, you still think you're gonna arrest us all?" Aiko sneered, Ichigo resting her hands upon her shoulder as she floated in the air, Soichiro leaning next to her while Mizu opposite of him placed an arm on her shoulder, all of them meeting the denim-dresed man's gaze.

Best Jeanist sighed. "Apparently everything has to be spelled out for all of you." He closed his eyes, holding his tongue despite all the profanities he wanted to curse to the world because of his inability to not do his job this time around. "We will _stand down_."

"YAY!" Ichigo cheered, hugging Aiko playfully as she floated in the air, grinning happily. Soichiro began dancing in place as Mizu smiled, congratulating Aiko.

"I knew you could do it." Mizu remarked as Aiko blushed.

"Don't say that, M… Mizu." Aiko smiled, able to hear the voice of her mother in Mizu as she gripped the blade that trapped Best Jeanist's hand against the ground and forcefully pulled it straight out, to the discomfort of the denim-dressed hero.

The fallen train had surrounded all of the open area all around the seven citizens as Osamu opened his eyes, bringing a hand to his bleeding chest.

Immediately Soichiro had rushed to his aid, sinking to the floor to help him up.

"Hey, buddy, we've got you. Did you see what Ichigo and I did?" Soichiro pointed to the train surrounding the area. "We really did a number on them! Just the sound of we 'throwin' a train down upon our enemies' is so cool! Don't you think so, man?"

Osamu chuckled weakly. "Yes… indeed." The dog then turned to Mizu, whom had began stroking his forehead, giving him comfort in her embrace. "I'm sorry I wasn't able to serve you until the end, if only my life had lasted longer I would've fulfilled all of your wishes…"

"You've done enough already." Mizu patted his head, congratulating him. "You've done all that you could, and that's the only thing that matters. Be proud of yourself."

The dog smiled and then turned his gaze over to Ichigo and Aiko. "You two girls have certainly caused the most trouble out of us all. I would certainly hope that doesn't carry over to your futures."

"Oh dear." Ichigo sighed and Aiko laughed. "We'll make sure that won't happen."

The dog then closed his eyes, taking his last breath as his body grew limp. Tears began falling down Soichiro's eyes as Mizu covered her own with her bangs.

Up upon Osamu's resting body, a ghostly figure stood upon him up on the fallen Industrial Train. Arata raised his blade and Osamu's body began glowing, a bluish soul rising slowly from it as his body began disappearing, dissolving into glowing dust. Soichiro and Mizu's eyes grew wide as everyone stood back in awe.

"Is that…" Soichiro began but before he could recognize whom the figure was, the soul then flew towards the sky, disappearing within the stars.

Aiko looked up to those stars, which shined brightly upon her as she noticed Arata meeting her gaze, nodding his head knowingly, then disappeared. Now knowing what she had to do, she turned to Ichigo, nodding her head.

"It's time to bring you home."

* * *

"How did you know they'd be near the coast of the city anyway? How did all of this start again?" Mt. Lady began rambling on with those questions in her head as she rubbed it, obviously still in shock and disbelief.

"You're the one to talk." Kamui Woods sighed, following behind Best Jeanist, whom had briskly kept up with the pace of the criminals ahead of them.

"Don't fall behind, Fascist-Man!" Soichiro teased, darting back at them from time to time.

"I'll tell you once, for I won't tell you again, it's _fashion_. I am no _fascist_." Best Jeanist crossed his arms. "And besides, insults of this kind matter to me not, you honestly fail to impress me."

"Who cares?" Soichiro leaned in next to Ichigo. "I did a real number on him, now he gives a shit. Before then, he didn't say anything."

The seven of them had now entered the graveyard, which caused all voices to hush. Ichigo stepped forward, bringing her hands together in prayer.

"Souls of the Dead, Hear Me, for I have Returned!" Ichigo spoke, stepping forward and raised her arms, a gust of wind immediately following upon her incantation.

Silence.

"Uhm, was something supposed to happen?" Soichiro leaned in to Ichigo's ear, whom turned her head, confused.

"I don't like this… why did we go along with them again?" Mt. Lady asked again, which Kamui Woods shook his head, unable to remember a clue either.

Suddenly, the ground began shaking, the soil beneath them churning into dust as thousands of bluish souls began rising from their graves, groaning loudly as though they had just been awoken from their slumber. Ichigo stepped back, recognizing the faces that greeted her, including one man in particular-

Her _father_.

"I should've expected you would return, but it seems that I haven't." Rei spoke, crossing his arms as he met his daughter's gaze.

" _Hello, Father_." Ichigo greeted him in an obvious snarl.

"And what makes you think you're worthy to go back to us among the dead? After that stunt you pulled, derailing yourself while your mother and I had to watch! How devastating that was for us, watching you die! Do you know what that's like, now, do you? And now you had ran away again! Worried, we were!"

"'Worried'?! You were never worried, you just wanted me to live so I could be your doll to dress up and change! You wanted me back so you could use me again, is that it?! Well I'm back now and I'm going to stand my ground this time!" Ichigo stepped forward, confronting her father as his eyes grew wide, stepping back in fear. Ichigo continued floating forward, causing Rei to trip upon a patch of soil and fall upon his knees as he met Ichigo's gaze, pleading for mercy.

"F-Forgive me… Whatever I've indulged upon you… I-I take it all back…"

"No you can't, for being among the dead's permanent." Ichigo sneered and raised her hand. Rei covered his face, both in shame, and fear of what was about to happen.

Then, she embraced him.

"Ichigo-" Aiko began but Mizu held her back, grinning at her knowingly.

"Let's start over, Father. Forget the past, forget our hardships. Just let us live again… a normal family life. It wouldn't be hard, it would be just the same as before…" Ichigo then met his gaze, smiling softly. "Only if… you think of me as your perfect daughter."

Rei was at a loss of words as he stared upon his daughter, the same girl whom he had tortured all these years, the one whom he cursed as irredeemably imperfect, a broken doll that couldn't be fixed. Yet here she was, willing to live the afterlife with him at the cost of her own volition, only asking now for his trust.

And could he give her that trust, forget that she was an imperfect doll?

The man said nothing. Ichigo sighed, knowingly, then departed from his embrace.

"Wait." He spoke, interrupting the small silence as he took his hand. Ichigo turned, meeting his gaze as he looked up at her.

"I've been…" Words began forming in his mind, and the image of his own daughter, the baby whom his wife had borne, the girl that they had agreed to have.

His sweet, beautiful baby girl, now offering her forgiveness to him.

He raised his composure, upfront and confident. "I've been unfair to you. You're the only daughter I have, and I've been unfair to you."

He stepped forward, raising a hand. "I was worried… you would end up becoming what I've always feared… a monster. But you've witnessed first-hand on what that was like, haven't you? I should've realized I was _turning_ you into that monster… turning you into what I feared, ironic, huh." Tears began falling down his eyes, realizing his mistake. "I-I'm so… so pathetic…"

Ichigo then caught him, embracing him by holding him tight. "No you're not, you didn't know what you were doing. But you know now of your mistake, and that's all that matters." She then met his gaze, grinning playfully. "Now let's not let that happen again, now, shall we?"

He smiled. "I pledge upon my soul."

Ichigo then turned, stepping away from her father's embrace as he let her go, meeting Aiko's gaze as the Shamisen Girl smiled, gripping the strap of her guitar.

"One day that guitar's gotta get another string. I think it'll sound better then." Ichigo teased.

"I bet." Aiko smiled, raising a hand and Ichigo took it.

"Sayanora, Ghost Girl." Aiko gripped her hand tightly, then released it, letting her go. The Ghost Girl smiled, and then mingled among the souls, which one soul belonging to an old lady had began bouncing excitedly around Rei.

"I told ya we were all Reikon! Good feelings to all!" She cheered as Ichigo waved a hand, saying goodbye to her best friend, the one person who's been through the same pain she had, as they disappeared, sinking beneath the abyss as the full moon rose above the sky.

"Had we been one second too late the full moon would've risen." Best Jeanist pointed out, raising his head. "When a departure soul does not return within the next full moon, they will perish. I've read it somewhere… it's strange that I remember it now…" He turned to his comrades as Mt. Lady's eyes had began to close.

"Man… what time is it?" Mt. Lady found herself leaning upon Kamui Woods' shoulders, exhausted. "I'm sleepy. Hey Nishiya, mind takin' me home on your shoulders? I would like that very much." When Kamui Woods hadn't responded, Mt. Lady's senses awoke as she stared at him. "Hey Nishiya… Nishiya?"

His expression was dark, almost as though he saw something traumatizing. Mt. Lady met his gaze, confused. Then the man turned, meeting her gaze with a serious expression upon his face.

"Go carry yourself. Only the strongest can survive this cruel world." Kamui Woods spoke, his voice hardened and stoic, a stark contrast to the laid-back demeanor he had before. This worried Mt. Lady as she grinned sheepishly.

"Is that so? Oh Nishiya, you're so…" She twisted her grin into a smirk. "AHAHAHAHAAA! OH MY GOODNESS, YOU'RE HILARIOUS! YOU'RE A GREAT ACTOR, YOU KNOW! HAHAHAAA, WOW, YOU CAN CHANGE EMOTIONS REAL FAST, THAT WAS DEEP!"

"I don't think he was joking, Yu Takeyama." Best Jeanist spoke, turning to Mt. Lady as she stopped laughing, meeting his gaze. "Shinji Nishiya has a troubled backstory, you know, and seeing, perhaps, a familiar face among the dead might've shifted his senses a little, awakened something, perhaps." The denim-dressed man turned to Kamui Woods. "Tell me, Nishiya, how are you feeling?"

"I feel…" Kamui Woods brought his hands up to his chest, curling them into fists. "I feel like a new man."

"That's good to hear. So I expect you would take Hero business seriously from now on, is that right?"

"Indeed." He nodded.

"Awww… I miss the old you already." Mt. Lady whined at him.

"Oi, it's getting late. We should head back to our homes before Takeyama collapses on herself. After all, our hero business is all over now." Kamui Woods ordered, which caused Mt. Lady to blow a raspberry.

"AHAHAHAAAA, OH MY GOODNESS YOU'RE SO SERIOUS, AHAHAHA OH MY GOODNESS, OH, YOU'RE HILARIOUS!"

Best Jeanist sighed, then looked up to the sky, to the stars above. He wondered whatever Kamui Woods had seen, he hoped it would've changed him for the good, rather than for the worse. But as of now, he could continue work as a Pro Hero with his comrades, enjoying their time together while they last. Thinking about this to himself as he smiled, following his comrades along to the exit of the graveyard.

"Hey." Soichiro turned his head, greeting them. "You ain't gonna stay to pay your respects to the dead?"

"To what else am I to pay my respects to?" Best Jeanist asked, meeting his gaze. "Returning a man his daughter is enough in payment, is it not?"

"Good point." Said the chameleon, thinking out loud.

As the Pro Heroes departed, Aiko stared at Mizu, whom had a smile upon her face.

"Did you see her?" Aiko asked her quietly as she stared upon the grave in front of her, realizing it was the grave of Ichigo Rei. It appeared, she learned now, that she had died of a train incident.

Mizu turned her head. "Who?"

"Your daughter. Airi."

Mizu chuckled a little. "She died at sea. If she were a soul she'd be resting among the sea, not among the Earth. But souls could be reborn too, you know." She met Aiko's gaze. "So long as they continue to remain in the afterlife, they have a choice, to stay or to resume a new life- but to leave behind their memories. It's a hard decision, really, but that's the price you pay to live a new life in a new body."

Aiko smiled, bringing a hand to her Shamisen and strummed the two strings upon them. "That's interesting."

Bringing a hand to her head, she now plucked a strand from her hair, tying it among the other two chords. She then strummed the instrument and now found that she could create a tangible rhythm, playing it to her heart's content.

She smiled happily and Mizu patted her head. The two then began exiting the graveyard, Soichiro enthusiastically, but patiently following along, thankful to be rid of the place once and for all.

Aiko gripped the strings upon her Shamisen guitar, remembering all that she's been through, all the memories of her past including her father's death. He had assisted her until this point, which now he could rest upon the dead. Aiko wondered how her mother was doing, how she was faring in the afterlife.

She shrugged those questions off. They were in a different world now. Wherever they may be, it didn't matter to her, because she was going to move on.

But she would never forget them, for she had the strings upon her Shamisen Guitar that served as reminders of all that she's been through.

The Two- now _Three_ Strings.

 **THE END**

 **~9o9~**

 **Well… That was interesting. So that's the end, y'all! I hope you've enjoyed the story, leave a comment or a fav, whatever works for you so long as I see that someone's enjoyed it! What a journey… Man, keeping up with these updates has always been an interesting experiment for me, and I'm glad I was able to finish this story! Not often does that happen with every author but hey, I told you I was gonna finish this story! Anyway, enjoy the rest of your life, I guess I'll see y'all soon, in another world, another dream, perhaps.**


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